Now or Never
by raindrops-on-teacups
Summary: When the Pevensies invite another royal court to Susan's birthday celebration and to stay with them for a whole month, what will be the outcome? With a snobbish prince, his cousins, and a mysterious stranger anything could happen!Please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

This is the first story I'm submitting to so I hope you all like it! Sorry the summary really sucks but if you know me, you know summaries are not my cup of tea! haha! No copyright infringement intended!

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It was Susan's birthday today and of course all of Narnia was in an uproar for her birthday celebration. In castle Cair Paravel the Pevensies were preparing for the ball along with everyone else at the palace. Lucy and Susan were in Susan's dressing chamber, getting ready for the ball.

"I love that shade of green on you, Lucy!" Susan said as she pinned a soft pink flower onto the bodice of her crimson gown.

"Yes, you've told me many times already!" Lucy giggled as she swished her sea green dress sprinkled with tiny diamonds. "Do you think we'll dance the whole night? Oh I hope we do! Maybe you'll meet someone eligible, Susan! You're 24 now!"

"Is that all you think about, Lucy? Suitors?" Susan took hold of her sister's hands and gave them a gentle squeeze. "Though I do think I know who you're hoping to come."

"And who would that be?" Lucy swung her and her sister's hands back and forth slightly, still smiling.

"Prince Chars!" the sisters giggled together. "I do think he likes you, Lucy!"

"Really?" Lucy let go of her sister's hands and bit her bottom lip. "He's very charming and well mannered. Do you think he'll dance with me? I hope he does! And also…" Lucy trailed off as she sat down on a cushioned chair.

"And also what?" Susan sat down next to her.

"Oh nothing. It doesn't matter…" Lucy seemed a bit troubled as she turned her face from her sister to look out the window at the glistening sea.

"Lucy, what's bothering you?" Susan put a comforting hand on Lucy's shoulder. "Is it still the same thing? The thing about Mr…Tumnus?"

Lucy nodded her head. "He never seems to notice me at all, well at least not for the woman I am now. He can't see me as anything but the same little girl he met at the lamppost years ago. I doubt he ever will."

"Oh, Lucy, don't let that bother you," Susan used the best motherly tone she had. "He's much too old for you anyway. And besides, you have Chars to look out for now! I'm sure you'll find him much more suitable!"

"Yes, I suppose you're right," Lucy smiled as she turned her head to face Susan. "I'm just wasting my time thinking about him. Chars is a more reasonable target for me anyway. And what about you, Susan, who do you have your eyes on?"

"Oh…well…no one really," she looked down at her hands. "I'm just keeping my eyes open for anyone suitable for me."

"Well tell me when you find him!" she grabbed her older sister's hands as their spirits became merry once again.

As the two Pevensie girls continued their talking and giggling, the Pevensie boys had their own conversations down the hall and around the corner in Peter's room.

"I can't stand these balls!" Edmund fell down onto his back onto Peter's bed.

"Oh quite your complaining, Ed!" Peter rolled his eyes as he turned to see his brother sit up from the bed. "It's Susan's birthday. At least pretend to enjoy dancing! After all, there is many a fine young woman at these balls."

"They're all the same though," Edmund moaned as he stood up and strode over to the map of Narnia that hung on the wall.

"What do you mean _they're all the same_?" Peter leaned back in his chair and put his feet up on the table.

"It's just that all these girls at royal balls have no…no…no sense of adventure, really! No sense of fun! They all just dance and talk about their dresses! They have no sense at all!" Edmund fell back onto the bed and put the palms of his hands on his forehead in frustration.

"No sense at all? Where do you get that from, Ed? Why I know plenty of girls with sense!" Peter put his feet back on the ground and leaned forward in his chair.

"I don't mean our sisters or maids, Peter!" Edmund flopped his hands down to his sides and continued to stare at the ceiling.

"What do you mean, Edmund?" Peter said sternly.

"Don't play stupid, Peter! You know what I'm talking about!" Edmund sat up and faced his brother. Peter didn't say anything but just gave Edmund a stern look. "Oh come on, Peter! You honestly thought I wouldn't find out about her! If you're going to be secretly seeing someone don't make it one of Lucy's maids! Lucy's the one who found out about you and Anise and we've all known for about a month now!"

"Are you serious?" Peter sat back in his chair again. "You, Lucy, _and_ Susan have all known? And I thought I was so clever at this game…"

"Well whatever game it is you're playing has to stop. When you shine the bright light on this situation she's a maid and you're a king. Not that rank is very important here but there's also the matter of…" Edmund eyed his brother and then looked up at the ceiling.

"The matter of what?" Peter sat up straight and looked at his brother with piercing eyes. "What, Edmund?"

"Well don't you know already?" when his brother's face showed no sign of getting at whatever Edmund was saying, he gave him a smug look. "I can't believe you don't know!"

"Edmund! Tell me!" Peter stood up from his chair and stepped over to his brother.

"I still can't believe you don't know already!" Edmund chuckled to himself. "Are you sure you want to know this?"

"Just tell me, Edmund!" Peter shouted as he clenched his fists.

"Ok then…your choice," Edmund stood up and placed his hands on Peter's shoulders. "Well…your little Anise is engaged to another man."

"What?" Peter's face was full of shock as it decided whether to turn red with anger or go pale. "Tell me you're lying."

"Peter, I wouldn't lie to you about this," Edmund's expression was now sympathetic as he removed his hands form his brother's shoulders. "I'm sorry."

"How long have you known?" Peter said darkly as he glared at his brother. "How long have you known!"

"For about two weeks," Edmund walked over to the door. "I'll leave you alone then, I guess."

"Just go! Leave me!" Peter kicked over his chair and sat down on his bed, leaning over and hiding his face in his hands.

Edmund closed his brother's door behind him and walked down the hallway, around the corner and to his sister's room. He stopped at the doorway and put his hand up to knock. He heard Susan and Lucy laughing and decided not to disturb them with his news. Why should their spirits be dampened? He continued trudging down the hallway and through the palace. He smiled at his royal subjects as they passed by.

"Good day, Tumnus," he smiled at the faun and passed him by.

"Good day to you too, your majesty," Mr. Tumnus bowed slightly and smiled. He noticed Edmund looked a bit low in spirits. He couldn't quite figure what would be wrong and didn't think over it very long, he had other things on in his mind.

_Tumnus, you old fool, tonight is your chance! You must talk to her!_

He wrung out his hands as he walked out onto the balcony and looked out at the sea.

_Oh what good will it do to talk to her about this? She thinks of you as nothing but an old silly faun and a dear friend. Why, she'll probably laugh at you if you tell her!_

He loosened his blue satin scarf from around his neck and leaned against the palace wall.

_Well, it's worth a try anyway. I can at least ask her to dance tonight and if things go well from there I'll talk to her about how I truly feel. Even if she doesn't feel the same at least I'll have gotten it off my chest._

He walked over to the ledge of the balcony and rested his hands on the cold stone. He took in a deep breath of the fresh air and closed his eyes. He opened his eyes to see the glistening sea and he smiled as the image of her came into his mind.

_Oh, Lucy, if only you knew…if only you knew how I truly felt._

He looked out over the landscape and saw a procession coming. There were blue and purple banners. Chars was coming.

Inside one of the carriages Prince Chars sat with his cousin Aidan.

"It won't be long until we've arrived at Cair Paravel now," Aidan looked out the carriage window at the sea. "Marvelous lands here in Narnia. I really do like it when we visit here, I find the trip most relaxing."

"Relaxing? I find myself absolutely stiff with boredom when we make our way to Narnia," Chars was slouched in his seat with his hands folded across his chest.

"But the people of Narnia are very pleasant, don't you agree?" Aidan leaned back in his seat and looked over his cousin.

"I will admit they are very pleasant folk but a bit too happy about life for me," the prince let out a sigh.

"Too happy about life?" Aidan let out a slight laugh. "Why shouldn't they be? I wish that I could look at life with such a positive eye as they do. Who knows? Maybe once the month is over we'll go back home with a new enthusiasm for life."

"A whole month," Chars moaned. "We only stayed a week last time and that was defiantly long enough. I wish the High King hadn't invited us for so long a stay. I don't know how I'll manage to keep myself amused."

"Well…" a grin pulled at Aidan's mouth, "there are many young women here and you can't forget the queens, Susan and Lucy. From what I hear they're still quite eligible. And wasn't it Lucy who you had your eyes on last time? I'm sure she hasn't forgotten about you yet."

"Oh yes, I remember her," Chars sat up in his seat now and leaned forward. "She's very beautiful, at least she was last year. And I daresay she is very naïve." He sat back in his seat again as he smirked to himself. "Yes, I presume I'll find some use out of her for the time being."

"Of course you will," Aidan laughed. "She was quite enraptured with you last year and there's no young woman who can easily forget the charm you carry. In fact, one of my sister's friends was quite smitten by you at a ball recently."

"Really now?" Chars leaned forward and looked out the carriage window, his head full of conceited thoughts. One of the horses pulling the carriage behind them let out a whiney as it pranced down the road. Inside the carriage were Aidan's two sisters, Jemma and Pippa.

"Oh! Hang these fancy balls!" Pippa, who was 19, leaned back in her seat and looked out the window.

"Pippa! Must you be so negative about everything?" said Jemma, the oldest at 23. "And try not to pout, it's not very lady like."

"Everything's not very lady like to you," Pippa huffed and crossed her arms, rolling her brown eyes. "You're always scolding me for some sort of misconduct."

"Well maybe if you tried to act like the lady you are I might not scold you!" she looked at her sister who just rolled her eyes again. "Maybe if you tried applying the manners you use in public to your everyday life it might not be so difficult."

"Ah! But it's already difficult enough trying to smile here and not eat that there and don't run here and wear this dress and those shoes!" Pippa hit her head against the wall. "I hate all this _proper_ stuff!"

"You're hopeless," Jemma said under her breath.

"I heard that!" Pippa sat sulking and looked out the window. "Are we there yet?"

"Soon," she joined her sister in looking out the window. "Actually it should be any minute now!"

"Good!" Pippa slouched in her seat again. "I'm tired of traveling!"

"Oh! Isn't Cair Paravel so beautiful?" Jemma smiled as she looked over the palace, her eyes passing over the window of Susan's dressing room, where her and Lucy were still preparing.

"Susan! Look! Chars is here!" Lucy practically shouted with joy and gave a little jump.

"They're the first ones to arrive tonight, then," Susan walked over to the window and looked down at the procession.

"Do you think Chars will remember me?" Lucy sat down in front of the mirror and brushed her long, silky brown hair.

"Of course he will! The only way he might not recognize you is because you've grown more beautiful since the last time he saw you!" Susan smiled as her sister blushed.

"Or because I'll be wearing a mask!" Lucy giggled as she ran her fingers over her silver mask speckled with little pink roses and pearls. "We've never had masquerade before, have we?"

"No, I don't believe we have," Susan looked out the window at a small blue bird flying freely through the air. The blue bird flew around the palace and past Peter's window. Peter paced about his room and occasionally sat down on his bed only to get up and pace a minute later.

"Engaged!" he muttered to himself. "I can't believe this!" he sat down on the bed again and hid his face in his cupped hands, remembering a week earlier….

The sun was warm on their faces and the birds sang a sweet tune for them. Peter and Anise were enjoying a picnic in a meadow late in the afternoon. Peter laid down on the blanket that was spread out on the ground and Anise laid beside him, resting her head on his chest, his arm wrapped around her shoulders. They laid like that for a while, enjoying the day and savoring each other's company. Peter kissed the top of her head and stroked her golden hair.

_"Anise?" he whispered gently._

_"Yes?" she whispered back in her sweet tone._

_"We need to talk."_

_"About what?" she sat up and looked down at him with soft blue eyes._

_"I am head over heels in love with you and I want you to marry me," he sat up too and kissed her on the forehead. When he drew away from her he noticed the regret and hesitation written on her face._

_"Oh, Peter, don't you think it's too soon?" she tried to smile at him._

_"Too soon? Anise, we've been seeing each other for six months now and I've proposed four times and every time you say the same thing," his voice was calm but on the verge of anger as he spoke. "Anise, I can't live without you. You have to say yes this time. Please."_

_"Peter, I love you so much too, but I just don't think it's the right time," she looked down at her hands. "I'm not ready for commitment."_

_"Few of us probably are," he cupped her face in his hands, "but I'm sure once we try it, it isn't a bad thing at all."_

_"Peter, I can't accept you now," she looked up at his eyes and down at her hands again. "Not now."_

_He let go of her face and stood up. "When are you going to be ready? It's practically killing me to have to do all this waiting for you to accept. I love you and you love me! I'm crazy for you! We both know it! The only sensible thing is for us to get married!"_

_"But, Peter, I'm…I just…I can't," she continued to look at her hands as she spoke. "Not now."_

_"What's wrong, Anise? There has to be something else wrong," he sat back down next to her. "You can talk to me."_

_"Nothing," she looked into his eyes, "I just don't think it's the right time for me to marry you."_

_"Well then," he stood up again, "it makes no sense for me to keep on proposing so when you're ready, tell me. But I think we should be getting back now. They'll wonder where we went soon."_

Peter stood up from the bed and walked over to his desk. He pressed down on it with his hands and then ran his hands over some books piled up. His eyes flashed with anger and he swung his hand up in the air and brought it down to knock over the pile of books.

"Why do you have to torture me, Anise?" he yelled and kicked a book that was lying by his foot. His shout was heard down the hall as Edmund continued his walking around the palace. It somewhat pained him to think of his brother in there. He hadn't seen his brother so hurt before. He was thinking of going back in there to talk to him but decided against it, he thought he better leave him alone now. He continued through the hall until he reached Susan's room. He took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

"Coming!" he heard Susan's dress rustle as she made her way to the door and opened it. "Edmund!" her smile faded as she saw the expression on his face. "Is something wrong?"

"I need to talk to you guys," Edmund walked past Susan into her room and sat down on a chair by the window next to Lucy.

"What's wrong?" Lucy put down her hairbrush as she looked at her brother with blue eyes shimmering with concern.

"It's Peter," Edmund looked out the window at the sea and back to his sister's worried faces.

"What's wrong? What happened to Peter? Is he ill?" Susan kneeled down next to her brother and took his hands in hers. "What is it, Edmund?"

"He…he found out…about Anise," he gazed out the window again. "He's not taking the news very well at all. And why should he? She's a filthy little wench."

"You mean, she hadn't told him?" Lucy felt pained for her oldest brother. "She told me that she was going to tell him and that she didn't want me to tell him, that she would do it. She didn't tell him! I thought they had split up a while ago."

"No, he just found out today," Edmund continued to gaze at the foamy waves from the sea. "I thought she had told him too, that's what surprised me. You told me that she was going to tell him. I thought that he was just hiding his emotions rather well and didn't want to mention it to anyone. But no, it's worse than that. This is the worst I've ever seen him, at least from when I left him."

"Should we go talk to him?" Susan let go of her brother's hands and started for the door.

"No! Don't!" Edmund stood up as well. "We should leave him for now. He wouldn't want us to see him like this, I could hear him yelling, he wouldn't be too happy to talk to anyone right now. Let's give him another hour or two to cool down a bit. He's gonna be fine, he always comes out fine."

"You're right," Susan put her hand on the doorknob. "We'll go talk to him sometime before the ball, but now we need to go greet out guests."

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There you have it! The first chapter! Did you like it? Did you hate it? Want to see more? Never want to see it again? Please tell me what you think! I'd really appreciate it! 


	2. Chapter 2

So here is chapter two! Thank you to everyone who read my first chapter and special thanks to StaR-758 and islington bus no. 299 for reviewing! I'm glad you liked it! Oh and I forgot to mention this in the previous chapter but when there's stuff in _italics_ that means the characters are either thinking to themselves or there is a flashback or a word is being emphasized (duh lol), but you guys probably figured that out! And of course no copyright infringement intended! ENJOY!

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**Previously...**

"Should we go talk to him?" Susan let go of her brother's hands and started for the door.

"No! Don't!" Edmund stood up as well. "We should leave him for now. He wouldn't want us to see him like this, I could hear him yelling, he wouldn't be too happy to talk to anyone right now. Let's give him another hour or two to cool down a bit. He's gonna be fine, he always comes out fine."

"You're right," Susan put her hand on the doorknob. "We'll go talk to him sometime before the ball, but now we need to go greet our guests."

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Three of the four Pevensies headed down the hallway, putting on the best expression they could conjure at the moment for their subjects. The minute they got to the entrance so did Prince Chars's procession. 

Lucy forgot about her brother for a moment as Chars walked into the palace. She didn't take her eyes off of him as he bowed to each of them. Her heart skipped a beat when he smiled at her and bowed.

"How very kind of you to invite us to stay at your fascinating palace," Chars put on his most charming smile, "but I am sad to say that my parents weren't able to attend with us on account of business. They send their birthday wishes for Queen Susan and their greetings to King Peter, King Edmund, and Queen Lucy." On her name he looked over at Lucy and gave her a wink.

"I am sorry to hear that your parents couldn't make it," Susan was the perfect model of grace as she stood before her guests. "But please, do come in and rest, you must have had a long journey. We've had rooms prepared for you and you're always welcome to walk about the palace as you wish. Our home is your home."

Edmund looked over the crowd, forming opinions on each person.

_Chars, a fruity pompous prince_, he didn't always care for him too much.

_Oh yes, and his cousin, what's his name? Hayden? Aidan? I'll find out later. Who are those other two girls? They must be sisters they have the same eyes. Very lovely brown eyes indeed. Are those his cousins too? I think they might be. I seem to somewhat remember them. I must have not seen them very much last time; I was out stuck hunting with that so-called prince the whole time. Well he has a lot of servants and that girl has very beautiful eyes. How could I have not seen her last time? _

And so Edmund went on with his thoughts, most of them about the girl, who indeed was Pippa. Pippa herself was trying to be as ladylike as possible while Chars talked with Susan and Lucy. She could hardly stand just standing there and smiling. Susan asked her and Jemma how their journey was and of course she had trouble trying to think of something sweet to say.

"Oh it was a very lovely journey, I quite enjoyed the scenery," Jemma was a natural at conversation.

"Umm…it was a very…umm…a very, very long journey," Pippa smiled and her sister had the urge to stomp on her foot. The king Edmund smiled at her and she felt her cheeks blush and turned her head away.

"Well then," Chars put his hands together, "if you wouldn't mind, your majesties, I'd like to rest a bit before the ball."

"Of course you must," Susan smiled at her guests. "Mr. Tumnus will lead you to your rooms."

"Oh yes! Follow me!" Mr. Tumnus gave a bow to Prince Chars as he walked down the hallway. Mr. Tumnus felt a bit jealous of Chars. Chars had caught Lucy's attention and was doing his best to flirt with her. He never cared much for him before but now he disliked him even more. He didn't see how he would have a chance with Lucy now that this arrogant snob had rudely stepped into the picture. He was no competition for Chars and it was obvious that he would have to compete with him if he wanted Lucy. He led everyone from the party to their rooms. When he led Pippa and Jemma to their rooms Jemma said that she wanted to take a walk to stretch her legs out.

"You have fun with that," Pippa said as she flopped down onto the bed.

"Pippa, make sure to get ready for the ball," Jemma said as she closed the door behind her.

"_Make sure to get ready for the ball_," she heard her sister mock from behind the door.

Jemma rolled her eyes as she made her way through the hall. She passed a room and heard something get thrown against the wall. She paused in front of the room, which Peter was in.

"I need to just get out of this room," Peter muttered under his breath as a weakening wave of anger swept over him and he threw a book at the wall.

_I'll just take a walk outside._

He opened the door to see a woman with wavy auburn hair and sparkling chocolate brown eyes. She was obviously startled to see him but recognized him immediately.

"Your majesty," she lowered her eyes to the floor as she curtsied and brought her eyes back up to meet his. "I was just taking a walk around the palace."

"Your ladyship," he bowed to her. "Well it so happens that I was taking a walk as well. Would you care to join me?" he offered his arm to her and she smiled as she hooked her arm through his.

_What are you doing, Peter? Are you mad? There's no possible way you'll be strong enough to manage being with anyone right now, especially a woman. What if Anise shows up? What are you going to do then? Why should I even care about her? She obviously can't love me very much; she's marrying someone else._

Peter took in a deep breath and tried to calm himself. His hands were sweating. Jemma felt a bit awkward to be walking with the high king.

_You hardly know him, Jemma. No, in fact you don't even know him at all. Oh, but what is a girl to do when a king asks her to walk with him? It's not like I had much choice. Well maybe you'll get to know him a bit more. We're going to be together for a month so might as well start bonding now._

"How are you doing, your majesty?" Jemma put in the first spark to starting a conversation.

"Well…I…I could be doing better," he seemed sad as he spoke but smiled as he looked down at her. "And please, call me Peter. Might I ask if you are in Chars's party?"

"Yes, I am with Chars, he is my cousin," she smiled at him. "And you may call me Jemma."

"You seem a bit familiar, Jemma, have you been here before?" he guided her around the corner and into the main hall.

"Yes, I was here last year when my cousin and brother accompanied you on a hunt," she was starting to feel a bit more at ease as she spoke with him.

"Oh yes, I remember," he found her voice calming as she spoke. "And you have a sister don't you?"

"Yes, a younger one, Pippa," they now walked towards the back of the palace.

"Pippa," he bit his lip as he tried to remember her. "Oh yes, she was the one who wanted to accompany us on the hunt, but you wouldn't let her."

"Yes, that would be her," she laughed and her brown eyes lit up. "I'm afraid she will never truly grow up." He smiled at the sight of her as they continued walking.

"Do you mind if we walk in the garden?" he led them to the door leading to the palace garden.

"Oh, I'd love to!" she smiled broadly at him as he gave her a genuine smile. As they stepped outside a breeze blew across their faces. A little over a mile away that same breeze blew across the face of another man.

This man was young, in his early twenties and he had wandered around Narnia for about half of those years. Some people called him The Wanderer because of this and others The Stranger because nothing was known about him. He only knew what was known about his past and he wasn't planning on telling it to anyone anytime soon. He hardly ever spoke to anyone and preferred it that way. Most of the time.

His usual rough appearance had been cleaned up and he now appeared a gentleman. He wore a white cape over his black outfit. He held a black mask with speckles of white in his hand. With this look no one would be able to recognize The Stranger.

He trudged through the wilderness to Cair Paravel. Everyone in Narnia was invited to Queen Susan's birthday ball and he wasn't planning on missing it. He took a deep breath and watched the waves crash against the seashore.

Edmund sighed as he watched the waves crash from the balcony. He leaned his back up against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest. His mind raced with thoughts about his brother, the ball…the girl he saw. He smiled as he thought of her. He knew she was beautiful but he figured she would be just like any other of those girls they see in court. But he still couldn't get over the fact that he couldn't remember her from last year. He furrowed his eyebrows as he tried to remember. When all attempts to remember failed he figured he would just ask her to dance tonight and find out all he needed to know then.

He watched the sea for a moment longer before deciding that he should go and see Peter now. He looked down at his feet as he walked up the few steps and into the main hall. He looked around to see if anyone of interest was there and continued on his way to Peter's room when there was no one of interest to be seen. He smiled and nodded to people he passed on his way and was surprised to find Peter's door open when he reached it.

"Peter? You here?" he cautiously walked into his brother's room and looked around for any sign of him. When all he saw was a few knocked over chairs and books scattered throughout the room he let out a frustrated sigh. "Where did you go, Peter?" he mumbled under his breath as he exited the room. He passed Lucy as he urgently made his way through the palace. Lucy watched her brother walk around the corner and wondered what he was in such a huff about.

_Maybe it's Peter. Maybe he went to talk with him and got in an argument or something. Whatever it is we'll be sure to know about it soon. I wonder if Chars will come down any time soon. Oh…he's even more handsome than I remember. And he winked at me! Oh and he smiled! What a smile he has! I'm sure he remembers me now! Oh I hope he does! Well he'll for sure dance with me tonight. I hope I don't mess up in the dance or get anything on my dress during dinner; that would be awful! I'll be sure to be very careful tonight when I eat and dance! Oh I hope I don't say the wrong thing to him and sound stupid! I'll just be careful with everything tonight!_

She walked through the halls with her head blissfully up in the clouds and hadn't noticed Mr. Tumnus until she bumped into him.

"Oh, I'm sorry Mr. Tumnus," she apologized and smiled at her friend.

"Oh no, it's quite all right," he brushed off his scarf and smiled back at her. "I see you're getting ready for the ball then."

"Yes, Susan and I have been preparing all day," she glanced behind him to see if Chars happened to be coming down the hall. "And how about yourself, what have you been up to?"

"Oh, well I don't really need to do anything to prepare for the ball," he noticed her glancing behind him. "Do you need to be somewhere or are you expecting someone now, Lucy?"

"No, not really," she looked into his blue eyes.

"Umm...Lucy?" he looked down at his hands as he wrung them together.

"Yes?" she pushed a lock of hair behind her ear.

"Umm…well…there's something I need to…umm…" he felt his stomach churning as he fumbled to find the right words. He felt his hands start to sweat and looked into Lucy's eyes. She smiled at him. "Well…Lucy…I…I-"

"Lucy! There you are!" Chars pranced towards them with his glowing smile across his face. "I went to go see you and you weren't in your room so I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Hold on a moment, Chars," Lucy's face was a portrait of happiness. "What were you going to say, Mr. Tumnus?"

"Oh…umm…just…nothing. Nothing important. I've forgotten already," he smiled and gave a bow to the prince and the queen. "I'll be leaving you then, your majesties."

"We'll see you at the ball then!" Lucy turned around to watch her friend walk away and then turned back to Chars. "Shall we go for a walk?"

Meanwhile, Peter and Jemma were still taking their walk out in the garden. Peter was feeling calmer now that he was with someone. He often felt a wave of grief sweep over him and tried to ignore it was not something easy to ignore.

"Your majes…Peter, is something wrong?" Jemma noticed her companion growing silent and he seemed to be sinking inwardly. He looked at her with sad eyes and gave her a slight smile.

"I'm just…" he took a deep breath as if to calm his nerves and looked out ahead of them. "I'm just…tired."

Jemma didn't entirely believe his answer but didn't say anything to him about it. It wasn't her place to say such things to him. She was about to say something to him and try to break the silence but he spoke up first.

"Well, I presume you have to get ready for the ball," he smiled at her and then continued to look out ahead of them. "Shall I escort you back to your room?"

"Thank you, Peter," they turned a corner and headed back for the door. Jemma let out a small sigh as they made their way back through the garden. They entered the palace once more through the back door. Peter looked to his side to see Anise going about her tasks. She looked up at him and he turned his head away from her. She watched him continue down the hallway with Jemma.

_Who is _she_? What is she doing with him?_

Anise turned back to her work arranging flowers on a table. She put a few more pink roses in the arrangement and stepped back to look at it. She decided it was good enough, picked up the basket that once held the flowers, and headed for the kitchen where she might be needed. She smiled to a couple of gossiping squirrels.

"Hello, how are you two today?" she paused in front of them and they looked at her with disgust in their little eyes.

"How could you?" one of them hissed and they scampered away. As they headed for the door she heard one say, "The poor king! She doesn't deserve him anyway!"

_Squirrels, they're always scampering about trees and vines to catch the latest news. But how did they…that can't be true…can it? Did Peter find out? He couldn't have! I didn't tell him! Did Lucy betray me? Stupid, imprudent girl! Some queen she is! I knew I shouldn't have trusted her! Oh but if I had been more careful she wouldn't have caught me going out to meet him! She wouldn't have found out about my fiancé either! It can't be that big of a deal anyways! Peter obviously wasn't as in love with me as he claimed! He's found someone else already! I can't believe he would do that!_

As she was about to enter the kitchen she saw Edmund walking through the hall. He looked over at her with hatred filled eyes. She turned away from his glare and was about to enter the kitchen before he caught her by the shoulders spun her around and pushed her against the wall.

"What were you thinking?" he hissed between clenched teeth. "Did you think my brother was just some toy? Huh? Why didn't you tell him? Are you really that selfish and arrogant?"

She easily hid her fear of him, hiding emotions was something she could be quite good at sometimes, behind an angry glare. "Your brother wanted me and who am I to refuse a king?" she retorted back very smart-alecky. His grip tightened on her shoulders.

"Don't play that game with me," the tone he used with her now was very threatening. "You could've told him right at the start about your engagement and saved him the pain, but, for whatever sick reason, you chose not to! Tell me why you did that! Tell me!"

"Please, your majesty, I have work to do," she sassed back to him.

"You little, heartless wench!" he spat out and released her from his grip. "You'll have no more work to do here! I demand you to leave! Gather your things and leave! Now!"

She didn't move from her spot but continued to glare at him with disbelief.

"Are you def? Go! NOW!" he shouted as angry and as loud as he could. A few of the people from the kitchen peaked their heads out to see what was happening but quickly went back to their work when they saw their kings face.

Anise gave him a last glare before heading down the hall towards her room. Edmund watched her go with fiery eyes. He let out an exasperated sigh and started to walk back the way he came. He turned the corner to see Lucy and Chars giving him an odd look. Lucy's face was worried but Chars was obviously lost.

"Edmund, what happened?" she took a step towards her brother as he continued to walk away from them.

"I've just dismissed Anise," she heard him say in a voice filled with rage.

"Lucy, what's going on here?" Chars put on a concerned look at she turned to face him again.

"Oh…well, to make a long story short, Peter loved Anise, she pretended to love him, she was engaged, he didn't know, he found out today, and now he's heart broken so Edmund is infuriated with Anise," she let out a sigh. "Edmund may be careless sometimes but he's always there for the ones he loves, he can't stand seeing them get hurt."

"Oh," he took in all the news and thought over it for a minute. "I'm so sorry to hear about your brother. Is he alright?"

"Edmund says he's very upset about it, but he'll come out fine like he always does," she smiled at the prince. "But we did just see him walking with your cousin, maybe she'll cheer him up!"

"Perhaps. She is a very thoughtful person," he hooked his arm through hers as they continued their walk. "If I was in Peter's place I would be very distraught indeed. I can't even begin to imagine the pain one must go through to have the one you love most lie to you like that. It's distressing to think that someone could be so cruel as to use a person like that."

"I agree," she smiled inwardly to herself as she listened to Chars talk.

_Oh! He's so thoughtful! He's so caring too! He's absolutely the perfect man!_

Chars was pleased with himself as he looked at his companions blissful expression.

_She's even more naïve than I thought. She'll fall for anything I tell her! Perhaps I won't be so bored here after all._

They walked past the clanging of pots in the kitchen and were about to head for the garden when they heard Susan's voice sounding through the palace.

"Lucy? Lucy!" she turned the corner and her face lit up when she found her sister. "There you are! Come on! We need to do your hair! More guests are arriving now! I'm sorry to take her away from you, Chars, I hope you won't mind."

"She hardly needs to fix her hair to make her presentable," his tone was smooth, "she's beautiful no matter what. But if you must, I'm sure it will add to your beauty."

Lucy blushed immensely and smiled timidly. She mumbled a small thank you and curtsied before Susan hooked her arm through hers and headed back for her room. As soon as they were sure they were far enough away from Chars not to be heard, the girls began to giggle.

"Goodness, Lucy! He must really like you!" Susan beamed and gave her sister's arm a small squeeze as they started up the marble stairs.

"You really think so? Oh! He is so charming! So polite too!" Lucy felt as if she were up in the clouds, floating up the stairs.

The sisters giggled some more as they reached the top of the stairs. Mr. Tumnus stood unseen in the corner. He watched his queens disappear as they giggled down the hallway and around the corner. He let out a small sigh and headed down the stairs. About half way down he ran across Chars and bowed his head to him.

"Your highness," he said, continuing down the stairs. Chars didn't make any sort of acknowledgement to him, just kept going up the stairs. Mr. Tumnus rolled his eyes.

_That boy isn't fit to be a prince. Has no respect for anyone but himself. I don't get what Lucy can possibly see in him. She's either very blind or he's putting on quite a show for her. The very thought of him doing that just makes me…it makes me want to…argh! Well she'll have to discover him soon, she's a very smart girl, it won't take her long to realize he's a fraud!_

Most of his thoughts were now invoked by jealousy. Though he wouldn't have cared for Chars even if he weren't so appealing to Lucy, but that just gave him more reason to dislike him. And if Mr. Tumnus hadn't fallen for Lucy, he might not be so into the matter.

Mr. Tumnus walked out to the balcony and was a bit startled when he saw Edmund there as well. He nodded his head towards him and Edmund nodded back, with an annoyed and angry look on his face.

"How are you doing, Tumnus?" the king said a bit emotionless, looking out at the sea.

"Oh…well…I'm umm…I'm doing fine," his head raced with thoughts of Chars and Lucy as he spoke. Edmund didn't give any sort of reply, words or expressions, but continued to gaze at the landscape. "And how are you, Edmund? You don't seem like yourself today. Is something the matter?"

Edmund turned around to face Mr. Tumnus, "I suppose you haven't heard then?"

Mr. Tumnus shook his head and Edmund continued, "Lucy told you about Peter and Anise, right? Ok, good. Well Anise is engaged, we found out two weeks ago, and she said she was going to tell him, but she didn't. And so I had to tell Peter today, so naturally he's upset…very upset. So when I saw Anise today I tried questioning her but she only gave me her snobbish remarks and I dismissed her. I hope we never see that wench again and I hope her fiancé leaves her…it would serve her right."

Mr. Tumnus took a deep breath and shook his head a little in pity for Peter. He wasn't sure what to say to this, if anything at all, so they stood there in silence for a moment.

"Well then, I'm going to go to my room, if you don't mind, Tumnus," the faun bowed his head again and smiled to his king. Edmund nodded back and went back inside. He let out a long breath and looked into the throne room to see guests starting to arrive early for the celebration. He smiled to the creatures as he passed them and they bowed to their beloved king. He reached the stairs and skipped the first couple as he went up. He reached the top of the stairs, skipping the top two. He smiled as he thought of racing his sibling up the stairs when they were younger. He walked past closed doors, one of which belonged to two of their guests, Pippa and Jemma.

"Ow! Stop it! That hurts!" Pippa complained as her sister tried to fix up her hair. "Why can't I just leave my hair long?"

"Oh, come on, Pip! Getting your hair done isn't that bad!" Jemma pinned up her sister's hair into a neat bun and left a few curls to hang by her face. "There now! That didn't take very long! Oh! But wait! I need to add something!"

"No you don't!" Pippa jumped from her chair and backed up towards the wall.

"Stop being such a baby!" Jemma held a small white rose in one hand and a clip with diamond and sapphire flowers in the other. "Now, which one do you want? The flower or the clip?"

"Neither!" Pippa pushed a brown curl behind her ear.

"Ok then, I'll chose," Jemma set the flower down on the windowsill. "The clip it is!"

"You don't give up, do you?" Pippa was pushed down into the chair once again as her sister placed the clip on top of the bun she had recently made and looked at herself in the mirror. "Ahh! I look like a moron!"

"No you don't!" Jemma now began to brush out her own hair. "Now go get your dress on."

Pippa huffed and plopped herself onto the bed, ignoring what her sister had just instructed her to do. "So where did you walk to?"

Umm…around the palace and the garden," Jemma set down the brush and began to decide how she should wear her hair.

"Who were you walking with? Someone was with you at the door," Pippa stood up and walked over to the window.

"I was walking with Peter…King Peter," Jemma turned around and looked at her sister. "I thought I told you to get your dress on."

"Yeah, you did, but I didn't feel like it," Pippa picked up the small flower and twirled it in her hands. "So did you actually talk to King Peter? Is he nice? Do you think he's handsome?"

"Yes, I did talk with him and yes, he is nice," Jemma was beginning to get a bit annoyed at her younger sibling now. "And I do think he is a handsome man. Now go get your dress on!"

"I don't really like his type," Pippa continued looking at the flower in her hand. "All these kings and princes are just too blah and boring and don't let girls do anything that's actually fun. I hope I don't end up getting stuck in a marriage with anyone in the royal court; that would be horrible and I'd probably kill myself. Or I could just run away now and become a huntress. Or I could be like The Stranger we've heard about on the road. Wouldn't that be something, to live by no one's rules but your own? I envy him."

"Oh, Pippa! Shut up! You're not very thankful to be living so fortunate a life as we are now!" Jemma rolled her eyes and turned from her sister to face the mirror. "Now don't say another word and go get your dress on!"

Pippa set the flower back down on the windowsill of the open window. A breeze began to blow and the flower started drifting towards the opening, but not quite close enough to actually float out the window. Pippa watched the flower and, though she would never admit it, felt a bit sorry for it not being able to quite reach the breeze and be carried freely. She leaned over towards the windowsill and gently blew on the flower, giving it the extra boost it needed to fly. She watched it sail away on the breeze and out of her sight.

The flower floated along the breeze and finally landed in the middle of a worn out dirt path. The Stranger looked down at the small pale rose that had just landed before his feet. He squatted down and scooped it up in his hand. He looked around to see where it had come from but there was no plant around him that contained a white rose. He stood and stared at the rose in his hands with cold, pained eyes. Voices from the past echoed in his mind and he clenched his fist, squishing the delicate rose in his hand. He opened his hand slowly and turned the palm of his hand downwards to let the petals fall. They lazily drifted to the ground, a few getting caught in the breeze.

The Stranger looked up at Cair Paravel. Although he had seen it many times, he had never actually been there but had definitely been told about it. He had a special interest in meeting the kings and queens who sat on the four thrones. What he had heard on them varied from which person had told it to him. He continued walking closer to the palace with his mask in hand. A breeze blew again and waves continued crashing against the shore.

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And in case you didn't know, you just read the second chapter! haha! What did you think? Let me know! I appreciate your feedback! And I hope you have a great day! 


	3. Chapter 3

Well hello again! I've got some great news! I just saved a bunch of money on my car insurance by switching to Geico! But besides that, I have chapter three for you guys! I hope you enjoy it! And thank you to everyone for reading my first two chapters! Special oober thanks to islington bus no. 199 and .Peace.Love.Tea. (love your pen name by the way!) for reviewing! I'm glad you were happy with the chapters! Oh and thanks .Peace.Love.Tea. for saying my summaries aren't that bad! That was very sweet! But now onto the story! And no copyright infringement intended!

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**Previously...**

The Stranger looked up at Cair Paravel. Although he had seen it many times, he had never actually been there but had defiantly been told about it. He had a special interest in meeting the kings and queens who sat on the four thrones. What he had heard on them varied from which person had told it to him. He continued walking closer to the palace with his mask in hand. A breeze blew again and waves continued crashing against the shore.

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Inside the palace by the sea Mr. Tumnus sat in his own room. He looked at a shelf of books, most of which Lucy had given him. His room at the palace was in a way like his real home with little trinkets here and there. In his hand he held one of his most beloved possessions, a handkerchief. It was this handkerchief that Lucy had given him on their very first encounter. Although he had told Mr. Beaver to give it back to Lucy when he got arrested, Lucy had given it back to him. She was still very young then and he had seen her almost as a little sister but that had changed, as she grew older. 

There was a time when he hadn't seen Lucy for a few months when she was out traveling. When he had finally seen her once again she didn't appear as the same Lucy she had been when she left. She still had the same joyous air to her and youthful eyes but Mr. Tumnus now saw something else. He saw that she had grown up more and became more of woman not just a little girl or an adolescent. He couldn't quite figure what had exactly changed about her, it was very subtle; it could have been there before her trip and the time of not seeing her made more things pop up once he saw her and talked with her again. The more he saw of her since then the more he started to like her as more than a friend and eventually fell in love with her. He never told anyone how he felt, he actually felt a bit embarrassed about it. He feared everyone would laugh at him and think it a good joke if they knew how he felt, especially Lucy.

"I don't have to worry much about that any more," Mr. Tumnus sat back in his armchair and watched the fire dance in the marble fireplace. "Even if Chars is a fake, she can't see it right now. And who knows how far he'll go in his stay this month? I just hope Lucy won't get hurt…"

As Mr. Tumnus relaxed in his chair thinking about Lucy, Lucy sat on a chair in her sister's room still getting her hair done. Susan tied up the curls she had recently made into a bun but let some curls come out from the middle and hand somewhat like a ponytail. She put some tiny sapphire clips on the top of her head and it looked as if someone has scattered them on there carefully.

"And there you go!" Susan gave Lucy's head a small pat. "We're all done with you now! How do you like it?"

" I love it! Thank you!" Luc tilted her head different ways so as to see exactly what her sister had done. "Do you want me to help you with your hair now?"

"Oh no, I'm going to leave mine long," Susan began to brush her long silky hair.

"Ok, well then I'm going to go to my room then," Lucy smiled at her sister, grabbed her mask and headed out the door. As she walked down the hall she kept her eyes open for any sign of Chars. When she had reached her room she let out a small sigh of disappointment and opened her door. She looked out her door in the hallway one last time before closing it. She set her mask down on the top of her wooden dresser and sat down on the edge of her bed and looked at her night table. She decided she didn't have much else to do so she opened the drawer on the little table and rummaged through its contents. There was jewelry, letters, seashells, and other little trinkets, each having some sort of meaning to her. She reached into the back of the drawer and pulled out a handkerchief. She knew right away the significance of this trinket; it was this handkerchief that Mr. Tumnus had given her when she was crowned queen.

Lucy always treasured the handkerchief above anything else in her drawer. Mr. Tumnus was always so kind to her and one of her dearest friends. When she was younger she sort of looked up to him and only saw him as a close friend. When she was around fourteen or fifteen she actually got a crush on him. She was very good at not telling anyone about it and she didn't want to. Lucy felt embarrassed that she fancied a faun and knew her siblings would get a kick out of it if she told any of them. And besides, she thought she would get over it sooner or later; but as she got older she only started to like him more. She eventually started to see that Mr. Tumnus would never see her as anything besides a little girl and that it was foolish of her to continue liking him in that way. When they went out traveling for a few months she got over him a little bit; and by traveling she had met more young men around her age. She got her first glimpse of Chars when she was traveling.

When the returned from their trip a few months later, she noticed that Mr. Tumnus was beginning to treat her a bit more like an adult. They continued spending time together and she still held her deep affection for him. She thought she was still good at hiding her feelings but Susan caught her blushing and wearing a certain smile when Mr. Tumnus paid Lucy a compliment once. It took a while for Susan to get anything out of her but Lucy confessed to her sister.

It wasn't long before Chars had come, along with his whole royal court, to hunt with Peter and Edmund. Luc immediately took an interest in him; an interest that almost completely swamped any interest for Mr. Tumnus. While Chars was gone for a year she became more interested in Mr. Tumnus again. Now that Chars was back, and for a whole month, she focused on him once again.

Lucy smiled slightly at the handkerchief in her hand and placed it back in the drawer.

_You had a crush on him, Lucy. And it's not like he will ever like you like that either. Honestly, you're a queen and he's a faun. Who ever heard of a faun and a human? Being with Chars will help get you over this thing. _

Lucy looked out the window at the clear blue sky.

_I shouldn't even spend so much time thinking and worrying about this. After all, it's just a crush. It's not like I fell in love with him…right?_

Lucy shook her head a little and blinked her eyes. She watched the wind blowing through the trees and let out a deep breath and she stood up from her bed. She leaned onto the widow sill and looked out at the landscape and the guests coming to the ball. Figuring it would seem rude to not have anyone there to greet them, Lucy left her room and headed down the hallway. On her way she passed by Peter's room, where he now sat at his desk.

_I wonder if Anise is going to be at the ball tonight. I need to talk to her. Why didn't she say anything to me today when she saw me? She doesn't think I'm with Jemma does she? Why should I even care? Anise can't really be with me any more. But what if it's all a lie? Maybe they got the news wrong. Oh Peter don't get yourself thinking like that. Edmund wouldn't lie and he got the news from Lucy who most defiantly would not lie. But what if she heard Anise wrong? I should've stopped and talked to Anise when I saw her! Ahh! I'm so foolish!_

Peter slammed his clenched fist down onto his desk and let out an exasperated sigh.He wasn't distraught like he was earlier but now more frustrated. He couldn't get his head to think straight or be rational about anything. He would occasionally let out his frustration by hitting something or standing up to pace edgily. He let out a frustrated sigh and banged his fist down on the desk again. He heard a small knock at the door and Susan's voice, though he wasn't quite sure what she had said.

"Come in," he sat down on the chair at his desk as his sister entered his room and walked over to stand next to his desk.

"Are you alright?" she looked down at him with her motherly eyes.

"I'll be fine," he looked out the window at the sky, now beginning to show the first signs of the sunset.

"Well, the ball is starting soon," Susan continued looking at her brother with concerned eyes. "If you don't want to go you don't have to, it's ok, I'll understand."

"No, I'm going," Peter looked up at his sister and gave her a small smile. "I wouldn't miss your birthday ball for the world. And besides, what would everyone think if I didn't show up? That can't be too good for my reputation and you know I get so engrossed in gossip around here." He used his playful sarcastic tone and Susan felt relieved to see that her brother wasn't appearing to feel completely distressed.

Peter stood up from his desk and grabbed his red and black mask. He smiled at his sister and put his arm around her shoulder, leading her out of the room and down the hallway.

In the thrown room the guests had swarmed in and were talking amongst themselves. Chars and Aidan stood at the edge of the crowd, having their own conversation.

"I'm expecting tonight to go very well," Chars leaned against the wall as he observed the humans and creatures in the crowd.

"And why shouldn't you? She's obviously mad about you," Aidan chuckled a bit. "Does she really seem that naïve to you?"

"Definitely, she'll believe anything," Chars smiled to himself. "And I bet I could get her to do anything."

"I'm sure you could, but don't try anything too serious," Aidan tried to sound firm as he spoke. "The last thing we need is a scandal and a heartbreak."

"Oh don't worry," Chars patted his cousin's shoulder, "I know exactly what I'm doing from experience."

Aidan raised an eyebrow and they both laughed, unnoticed by the crowd. The guests now settled down and put their conversations on hold as the kings and queens of Narnia entered. Each one smiled at the applauds of the guests as they made their way down the aisle and stood in front of their thrones. Peter smiled and rose up his hands in a motion of silence and the crowd died down.

"Welcome citizens and friends of Narnia! We are honored to have all of you here tonight for the celebration of Queen Susan's birthday!" the crowd cheered and yelled out their birthday wishes to Susan as Peter continued. "I hope you all have your masks with you because as you know this is a masquerade!" the crowd held up their masks in the air as they cheered some more. "Be quick and put those masks on before someone recognizes you!" everyone laughed as they hastily put their masks on, including the Pevensies. "Good! Now that we're all ready for this ball, who says we start it?" their guests cheered and applauded, filling the palace with a joyous air.

"And I thank you all for coming tonight! I hope you enjoy yourselves!" Susan made a final announcement, as she and her siblings became part of the crowd.

The music began and everyone joined in the first dance. Of course Chars danced with Lucy, who was feeling quite in heaven. Aidan had the honor of being the first to dance with Susan. Peter and Edmund were dancing with other girls from Chars's court. While dancing Edmund kept his eyes open for any sign of the girl he had seen earlier. When the first dance came to an end he bowed to his dancing partner and walked about the room, looking for her. He became discouraged on his third trip around the room without seeing her so decided to do what he normally did at balls when he didn't want to dance: hide. He smiled to people and creatures as he made his way to a pair of deep blue curtains at the end of the room. He stood with his back to it for a moment and, when he was sure no one was watching, backed into the curtain and into a small room. He let out a sigh of relief. Looking out the crack between the two curtains he smiled to himself in the dark secluded room. He began to back up with his hands behind his back to feel for the chair he knew was there. His hands didn't feel a chair but a face. He quickly spun around as the other person shot up from the chair. From the bit of light coming in through the curtains he could tell it was a woman.

"Why are you back here all alone?" Edmund tried to sound as if he were shocked to see anyone hiding during a ball.

"I was about to ask you why you came back here," she replied back to him as she squinted her eyes to see who he was, though she could hardly tell from the mask. "Umm…who are you?"

"I'm…I'm Edmund," he too was trying to recognize her through the mask and the dark. "And who are you?"

"I'm Pippa," she thought over his name for a moment and a sudden realization hit her. "Are you _King_ Edmund?"

"Yes, that would be me," he took off his mask and tossed it on the chair. After a moment she did the same. He now took a good look at her face and recognized her as the girl he had seen earlier. "You're Chars's cousin, aren't you?"

"Yes," she sighed and pushed a curl behind her ear.

"Don't you want to get back to the ball?" he said this a bit hesitantly.

"Honestly? No, I do not, but I'll go if you want to be alone," she started for the curtains but he put out his arm to stop her.

"Don't go if you don't want to," he put his arm back down and she gave him a puzzled look. "There must be a good reason why you don't want to go back. Is something wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong. I just hate balls," she said this very casually and Edmund now looked upon her with admiration. "And why are you back here?"

"Same reason," he smiled at her and she smiled back. "This is one of the best places to hide at balls because while remaining hidden you can still keep an eye on everyone. And also if your siblings ask where you were you can say you were in the ball room because technically this is in the ball room."

"You come back here a lot I take it," Pippa leaned over and looked through the curtains with Edmund.

"Only when I get sick of dancing, so, yes, I do come back here a lot," Edmund laughed but his smiled faded as he saw someone. "Shoot!"

"What?" Pippa tried to guess who he was looking at.

"It's Meg," he pointed out a girl wearing a pale green dress with long brown hair and whose gold mask had been pushed up to the top of her head. She appeared to be searching for someone. "Why don't you just give up?" Edmund said under his breath as he rolled his eyes.

"What is she doing?" Pippa watched Meg as she asked people whether or not they had seen Edmund. "Do you not want her finding you or something?"

"Exactly," he kept a close eye on Meg to make sure she wasn't coming towards them.

"Might I ask why?" she asked a bit impatiently.

"Because ever since I courted her a while back she can't seem to get over me," Edmund sighed. "And it might be easier to get rid of her if she wasn't so close to my sisters, but she's hanging around them almost all the time, so that is rather frustrating."

"Why don't you just tell her to stop bothering you?" Pippa said this to him as if he were an idiot.

"The problem is that I've done that and in about every way imaginable," Edmund laughed in a frustrated and annoyed way.

"Oh, I see. So, she's pesky. I hate people like that," Pippa watched as Meg took another man's arm and went onto the dance floor.

"Me too," he turned away from the curtain now to face Pippa. "What do you say we get out of here?"

"You mean leave the ball?" she seemed shocked that he would think of that but didn't mind one bit that he had. "Where would we go?"

"Come on," he took her hand and she felt a tingle travel up her arm. She didn't question him as he lead her to the back of the small room and felt for something on the wall. She heard him knock on something made of wood and then heard the creaking sound of a door opening. He gently pulled her into the dark passageway and led her down a small flight of stairs. They traveled down a small dark hallway before he stopped and felt for something on the wall again, another door. He found the door after a moment and opened it, light flooding in from the kitchen. The cooking staff was busy preparing dinner and they all turned their heads to see their king and another lady enter through the door.

"Edmund, what are you doing down here right now?" an aged plump woman with gray hair tied sloppily back in a bun shook her sauce covered spoon in the air at him. "You know you shouldn't be sneaking out of balls like this any more! You're getting too old for it! And who is this you have with you?"

"This is Pippa, Chars's cousin," Edmund still held onto her hand. "And if you don't mind we would both really like to leave the ball for a bit and this was the only safe way out."

"Well then, I really should make you go back," the old cook tapped her foot on the ground, "but I guess I'll let you go again. Just don't be late for dinner, I'll save some for your friend but not you!"

"Thank you!" Edmund kissed the cook's rosy cheek and pulled Pippa along behind him.

"Oh no need to suck up to me!" the woman chuckled as she went back to the sauce she was stirring.

Pippa and Edmund got their fair share of skeptical stares from the cooking staff as they exited the kitchen. Pippa wanted to threaten them if they dared to start a rumor but restrained herself. She noticed that Edmund still held her hand and thought about yelling at him but decided against it, he didn't seem to deserve to be yelled at, at least not in her book. She sighed and pushed a curl behind her ear again. He led them through a few halls and down a few stairs, not saying anything.

"Where are we going?" she took a few quick steps to walk next to him.

"We're going out by the sea," he smiled and didn't say anything more so that the only sound they heard was their footsteps on the marble floor and the music and chatter from the ball.

Upstairs at the ball the non-existent presence of Edmund and Pippa was hardly noticed. The only one who had seen any of them slip behind the curtain was The Stranger. He stood leaned against the wall along with everyone who wasn't dancing. He tried to keep an eye on the four Pevensies. He wanted to talk with one of them, get to know them a little and leave some sort of impression. His reason for wanting to do this wasn't even that clear to him; he wanted revenge on someone, though he wasn't sure whom. Either to break or keep a promise he had made, that was his goal, but it might take some time.

He watched the crowd as a particular dance came to an end. Some people got ready for the next dance by switching partners, staying with the one they had or leaving the dance floor. The Stranger spotted Queen Susan walking his way, smiling delightedly. He took in a breath and walked towards her. When he reached her she smiled at him and he bowed to her.

"May I have this dance, your majesty?" he said in his smooth gentlemen-like tone.

"You may," she nodded her head to him and he hooked his arm through hers, leading her onto the dance floor.

They stood facing each other and he put his hand on her waist and she put hers on his shoulder, each taking their other free hand in each other's. The music started and their feet began to move to the steps of the waltz. Each took light steps and they flowed through the waltz with little problems as to the steps.

"You dance very well, you must dance at balls very often," Susan smiled up at him and tried to recognize him through the mask.

"Actually I very seldom dance," he gave her a slight smile.

"One would hardly know," they turned in a circle to the music.

"I've watched people dance and practiced a few times, but I'm afraid that's all the experience I have," they turned in a gentle circle again.

"Tell me, have I seen you before?" Susan had finally given up trying to guess at who this man was.

"You might have, but I doubt it," the way he talked felt a bit mystifying to Susan and she was feeling rather uncomfortable now.

"Are you from Narnia?" she tried to keep a smile remaining on her face.

"Yes, I am," he could sense the uneasiness about her as they continued with the dance. "But I hear you are not from Narnia. Where are you from then?"

"Oh, you probably wouldn't know where I come from, no one does," she tried to laugh a little bit at this. "Do you happen to have any relatives that we would know of?"

He chuckled at her last question. "I might."

"What's so funny?" she was now feeling uncomfortable and confused.

"Nothing, just nothing," he smiled at her. "I'm sorry if I'm making you feel uneasy with me, I guess I don't have very good people skills."

"Oh…well…you don't have to be sorry," some of her uneasiness lifted away now. "None of us can be good at everything, people skills included."

"Very well put," they took another turn in the waltz. "Although sometimes I guess people have hidden skills that we're not aware of, not until they try it at least."

"That's true," she smiled at him again. "Maybe your people skills are your hidden talent."

"Maybe they are," he gave her a smile.

"I know this is going to sound really rude but, what is your name?" Susan felt a bit embarrassed by asking this although she knew it was nothing to get embarrassed over.

"My…my name is…Eldon…" he felt a bit odd saying his name for he hadn't told anyone in a while.

"Well, Eldon, I hope we'll be able to talk again sometime," they now began to take the steps close to the end of the waltz, "and perhaps work on your hidden people skills."

"I hope so," he looked into her calm, clear blue eyes and felt safe and at ease. He let out a small sigh and, a bit hesitantly, leaned his head next to hers and kissed her gently on the lips. She surprisingly didn't pull back but when he drew away there was a look of great shock on her now flushed face. The music ended and they let go of each other. Without a word he turned and walked away from her. She wasn't sure if he had really just kissed her and, if he did, whether or not she should run after him to give him a piece of her mind. By the time it actually sunk in that he had kissed her he was nowhere in sight.

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ooo! I hope you liked this chapter! Please tell me what you think! It means a lot to me! Have a great day and remember to smile:) 


	4. Chapter 4

Hey ya'll! I have come back and I bring chapter 4 with me! Thank you to everyone who read my previous chapters! I hope you liked them! And of course a special thanks to StaR-758 and islington bus no. 199 for reviewing chapter 3! And to islington bus no. 199, I don't think you'll really need to change your mind on Chars! That's all I have to say...and now onto the story! No copyright infringement intended of course!

* * *

**Previously...**

"Well, Eldon, I hope we'll be able to talk again sometime," they now began to take the steps close to the end of the waltz, "and perhaps work on your hidden people skills."

"I hope so," he looked into her calm, clear blue eyes and felt safe and at ease. He let out a small sigh and, a bit hesitantly, leaned his head next to hers and kissed her gently on the lips. She surprisingly didn't pull back but when he drew away there was a look of great shock on her now flushed face. The music ended and they let go of each other. Without a word he turned and walked away from her. She wasn't sure if he had really just kissed her and, if he did, whether or not she should run after him to give him a piece of her mind. By the time it actually sunk in that he had kissed her he was nowhere in sight.

* * *

Just in sight of Susan stood Aidan. He had watched her dance with Eldon and had grown extremely jealous when he saw him kiss her, for Aidan was very fond of Susan. He had fallen in love with her grace and beauty the first time he had seen her and respected her for the queen she was. Respect for women was a quality that Aidan did not share with his cousin. 

Aidan was now worried that he would never be able to have any sort of chance with her now that he had seen her with this man. Needless to say, he was in a very discouraged mood and in that state turned his head from Susan and walked over to where his older sister Jemma stood.

"Oh there you are, Aidan!" Jemma smiled brightly at him, her cheeks flushed from dancing so much. "Are you having a good time?"

"Of course," he smiled back, hiding any dissatisfaction he was feeling. "And you? I suppose you are enjoying yourself."

"I'm having a wonderful time!" her brown eyes sparkled as she examined the crowd.

"Are you looking for someone?" he eyed her curiously.

"No…no…I'm not looking for anyone," she looked back at her brother and grinned. "I'm going to go get something to drink, care to join me?"

"Sure, why not?" the two siblings made their way through the crowd and to the refreshment table. On their way they passed by Mr. Tumnus, who stood leaned against the wall, talking to one of his friends.

"Go on, Tumnus, ask someone to dance!" the fox looked up to his friend.

"Not right now," Tumnus wrung his hands together.

"Alright, then ask someone for the next dance!" Fox watched Tumnus as he look out nervously on the dance floor. "Tumnus…is there something bothering you?"

"Umm…what? Oh! No, no!" he lied and looked down to the fox, who gave him a skeptical look.

"You've been acting rather nervous so far tonight," he sat down on the floor.

"Oh…well…I…" he trailed off as he gazed distantly at Lucy as she glided across the dance floor with Chars. The fox was quick to notice this.

"Well…why didn't I see this before?" Fox said under his breath as he stood up again. "Tumnus, you've fallen for Lucy, haven't you?" Mr. Tumnus's face started to turn the slightest shade of red and he didn't respond to his friend. "You have then. For how long?"

"Would you be quiet?" Tumnus hissed in a whisper to his friend as he looked around to make sure no one else might be listening.

"Sorry, I won't talk about it now, but we will later," the fox gave his friend one last look before trotting away.

Tumnus felt a bit angry at the fox now, though he couldn't seem to find a very good reason as to why. He unknowingly continued to gaze at Lucy as the dance came to an end. Lucy and Chars walked to the refreshment table where Aidan and Jemma now stood.

"My dear cousins, how nice to run into you!" Chars beamed as he handed Lucy a drink. "How are you finding yourselves tonight?"

"Just fine," Aidan nodded his head to his cousin and took a sip of his drink.

"And how are you doing, Lucy?" Jemma showed her sparkling smile.

"I'm having a lovely time with Chars," Lucy smiled bashfully as she glanced up at Chars to meet his eyes. "He's an excellent dancer."

"As are you," Chars casually wrapped his arm around Lucy's waist and she felt a surge of excitement bolt through her.

Jemma and Aidan noticed this small action of affection their cousin showed the queen. They gave each other a glance as if to say, "He's at it _again_" and rolled their eyes.

A matter of yards behind them stood Peter, who had been trying to keep an eye on Chars with Lucy. He too noticed this action and politely excused himself from his conversation. He casually walked up to them, putting his arm around Lucy and separating her from Chars.

"And how are we doing over here?" he smiled at his sister and her friends.

"Fine, thank you very much," Lucy said, a bit agitated with her older brother at the moment. "Chars and I were actually just going to dance, weren't we?" she gave Chars a look of urgency.

"Umm…yes we were," he stepped around Peter and hooked his arm through Lucy's. "If you'll excuse us, your highness."

"Of course," he stepped aside and patted Chars on the back, who in return gave him a nod of his head before leading Lucy onto the dance floor. Peter sighed and looked over at his guests with a smile. "Jemma, it's good to see you again so soon."

"It's good to see you too…Peter," she grinned with her eyes shining. "This is my brother, my twin brother, Aidan. Aidan, I think you know who this is."

"But of course! It's a pleasure to meet you, your majesty!" Aidan gave a slight bow and Peter did in return.

"Please, I told your sister to call me Peter and I ask the same of you," he grinned at Jemma.

"Well I see that your sister is very well _acquainted_ with our cousin," Jemma said with slight sarcasm in her voice.

"I've noticed," Peter rolled his eyes. "But…not to say that your cousin is a bad man…but I've talked with him before and it just seems that…well… I've been trying to keep an eye on him with her."

"Oh don't worry, we're not offended by anyone insulting him," Jemma laughed. "We're only too used to his nature by now. We're practically his siblings; since we've been living with them for…oh…well…I don't remember…" her brown eyes had a far off look for a brief moment before returning back to their usual sparkle. Aidan looked over his sister with concern for a brief moment as well.

"Jemma, do you know where Pippa is? I haven't seen her lately," Aidan broke the silence.

" No I haven't seen her. Where did that girl get to?" Jemma glanced over the crowd looking for her sister.

Meanwhile, Pippa and Edmund had reached the beach and were strolling along on the sand. The two had tried at polite conversation for a while but found that neither was very good at it. Each attempt was followed by an awkward silence and then another attempt to be polite.

"What are we doing?" Edmund finally said out loud what they were both thinking. "We have now known each other long enough to know that a polite and formal conversation is something that we're not good at! So let's just set down all the manners, all the fancy words, which we probably do not know the meaning of, and be normal!"

"Does that mean I can take off my shoes?" Pippa looked down at her best shoes covered in sand. "These shoes kill and it's hard to walk on a beach with these."

"Go ahead," Edmund let out an easy laugh.

"Ok, but I'm gonna need to lean on you," Pippa put her hand on Edmund's shoulder as she slid both shoes off her feet. She let go of his shoulder and let out a sigh of relief as she dug her feet into the sand. "You have no idea how good this feels! I hate these shoes!"

"I would too, I mean if I had to wear them…if I was a girl…" he said clumsily and she gave him a pathetic look. "Ok, stupid comment! But you don't have to look at me like that!"

Pippa's face was pulled into a smirk as she tried to ineffectively contain herself form laughing. Before she could help herself she was laughing so hard she had fallen to the ground. Edmund looked at her, puzzled as to what was the joke. He couldn't help himself from laughing a bit too.

"What's so funny?" he sat down next to her as she calmed herself down.

"I'm not sure," she smiled broadly at him. "I guess I just find it funny someone like you would be so…straightforward I guess. I mean, just everything you've done from the moment I met you in that room is so…well…not what someone would expect a king to be like."

"And what are kings _supposed_ to be like?" he chuckled.

"I don't know…all uptight and into just ruling their country, I guess," she shrugged her shoulders. "Kind of like my uncle. He's usually too into what he's doing with the country to worry about us much."

"Your parents worry about you, don't they?" Edmund said jokingly.

"They probably would more than he does," Pippa's now quieter tone didn't match Edmund's. "But they've been gone for six years."

"I'm so sorry, Pippa," he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"It's ok, you don't need to be sorry," she drew lines with her finger in the sand. "I guess I'm still sad about it, but not like Jemma. She lost more than us."

Edmund didn't know how to reply and wasn't sure if he would end up saying the wrong thing. They each sat silent for a moment, gazing out at the sea.

"Umm…Edmund?" Pippa said a bit awkwardly.

"Yes?"

"Your hand is still on my shoulder."

"Oh, sorry," he quickly pulled his hand away from her. "So…um…do you have a lot of friends at the royal court?"

"Sort of," she placed her hands onto her lap. "I don't really like most of the people there, not that I know too many of them. But Jemma says that Brayton, some thirty-year-old freak, likes me a lot. But I told her that if he liked me he should come and talk to me about it. Luckily she hasn't talked to me about it since, so maybe he just forgot about me."

Edmund smiled at her as she gazed at the sea. _How anyone could forget her is beyond me._

As Pippa and Edmund continued their conversation on the beach, inside the palace the ball went on. Lucy and Chars had ceased to dance for a while in order to catch their breath. They had decided upon standing out on the balcony for the time being.

"Lucy, is it just me, or were you being uptight with your brother when he cut in between us?" Chars leaned back on the balcony rail.

"Oh, well Peter gets a bit too…I guess you could say fatherly sometimes," Lucy used an annoyed tone. "He thinks that since he's the oldest it's his responsibility to look after us all and it gets rather annoying sometimes. And he gets especially 'fatherly' with me since I'm the youngest. He told me that I don't use my head enough when it comes to judging people and that I'll end up in a huge mess one of these days because of it. But he doesn't know what he's talking about. After all, just look at him and Anise. Some fine judging he used there!"

Chars was somewhat surprised to see Lucy talk like this. _Well maybe she isn't as timid as I thought. Though it seems as though she is as blind to the world as ever. Everything will work out. But… Anise? Is it really _her

"Excuse me, Queen Lucy?" a young man stepped onto the balcony and put his hand out for Lucy. "May I have this dance?"

"You may," Lucy smiled at Chars as she left with the young man.

Chars watched her walk back into the throne room and smirked to himself. He haughtily walked a few steps into the room and leaned against the wall. He scanned the crowd, looking for anyone who might appear amusing to him. He spotted a woman with golden hair flowing a few inches past her shoulders and wore a salmon pink colored dress. Her back was facing him so he did not see her face. He watched as she paced towards King Peter. Peter seemed to be put back a little when she did say something to him. He saw them exchange a few hasty words before she turned around and they both began heading for the balcony. Chars studied her face for a few moments and it seemed familiar to him, but it was hard to tell from the silver mask she wore. When they were a few feet from him she glanced in his direction and her face flushed for a moment before she disappeared behind the wall.

"Anise?" he whispered under his breath.

* * *

And that concludes Chapter 4! I hope you guys like what's going on in this story! Let me know what you think! Your reviews mean a lot to me! Have a great day! 


	5. Chapter 5

Why hello there! Chapter 5 is glad to see you! Of course, thanks to everyone who read the last chapters! And I'd like a big round of applause for .Peace.Love.Tea., islington bus no. 199 and StaR-758 for reviewing chapter 4! I'm glad you guys like this story! Ok and as for this chapter, I hope you guys don't mind but it's going to be focusing on two of my characters and pretty much no one else...but just for this chapter! But I hope you guys like it! No copyright infringement intended!

* * *

**Previously...**

Chars watched Lucy walk back into the throne room and smirked to himself. He haughtily walked a few steps into the room and leaned against the wall. He scanned the crowd, looking for anyone who might appear amusing to him. He spotted a woman with golden hair flowing a few inches past her shoulders and wore a salmon pink colored dress. Her back was facing him so he did not see her face. He watched as she paced towards King Peter. Peter seemed to be put back a little when she did said something to him. He saw them exchange a few hasty words before she turned around and they both began heading for the balcony. Chars studied her face for a few moments and it seemed familiar to him, but it was hard to tell from the silver mask she wore. When they were a few feet from him she glanced in his direction and her face flushed for a moment before she disappeared behind the wall.

"Anise?" he whispered under his breath.

* * *

_Chars and Anise were both eight years old. It was a warm summer afternoon and they were enjoying it out in the palace garden. Chars was walking across a three foot high wall while trying to fight off invisible enemies with a stick in place of a sword. Anise sat on a rock placed in the middle of a small patch of flowers._

_"Get back! Back I say!" Chars parried with his enemies._

_"Watch out behind you!" Anise shouted with fake terror. "It's the evil Lord Charles!"_

_"You won't get me this time!" Chars jumped off the wall and turned to face Lord Charles. "I have the magic sword!"_

_He raised his sword up in the air and smiled at his enemy. Anise watched intently as he brought the sword back down and began to fight._

"Hurry, Chars! Or the dragons will come out and eat me!" Anise picked a flower and ripped off the petals, throwing them into the air.

_"I know!" Chars turned and gave her and annoyed look before turning back to Lord Charles. "Now I shall kill you!" he drove his sword into his enemy's heart. He pulled it out and stepped back to look at the body. Smiling, he knelt down and cleaned his sword on the grass. _

_"Come on!" Anise stamped her foot. Chars looked around to make sure no dragons were coming and ran towards Anise. He broke threw the prison bars with his magic sword and pulled her off the rock. They ran hand in hand to the wall and sat down._

_"Well now what do we do?" Chars threw the stick onto the ground. "Do we play a new game?"_

_"No! We're not done with that game yet!" Anise giggled._

_"We're not?" He said as if his tutor had just told him to work out another math problem before going out to play._

_"Of course not! Now the knight has to marry the princess he rescued!" she leaned her head onto his shoulder._

_"What!" he pushed away from her and stood up. "I'm not gonna marry you!"_

_"It's part of the game and you wanted to play it! So you have to!" she stood up and took his hand before he ripped it away._

_"No! We're not going to play wedding! I don't want to kiss you!" he sat back down. "I'm never going to kiss a girl!"_

_"Why?" she sat back down and looked at him with big blue eyes._

_"Because…because…it's gross!"_

_"Well then you don't have to kiss me. We can just play wedding, if it's easier for you that way."_

_Chars looked up at her and nodded. "Yeah it's easier. We can just play wedding with no kissing and then move on to a different game."_

Chars couldn't hear what was going on so walked across the doorway, glanced at them standing in the shadows and stood against the opposite wall of the one he was just at, just barely facing them, and in hearing distance.

"Anise, why did you come here tonight? If anyone else knows you're here…" Peter tried to sound calm as he spoke, but he couldn't very well mask the offense in his tone.

"I needed to talk to you and I knew for sure you'd be here," she removed her mask and held it in her hands. "And since this is a masquerade I figured nobody would very easily recognize me."

They both stood silent for a moment. "Peter…I'm sorry. I shouldn't have…it's all my fault," Anise looked down at the floor.

"Why did you lie to me, Anise? Why didn't you tell me?" Peter looked into her eyes.

"Tell you that I was engaged?" she let out a sort of small laugh. "I never really considered myself engaged."

"What? How can you not consider yourself engaged?" Peter wasn't sure if he was to be angry or confused.

"The marriage wasn't my idea, it was arranged."

"Why didn't you just tell me?"

"It's not that simple," she looked out over the sea, as her memories crashed into her like the waves crashing into the shore.

_Anise was 13 years old. She and Chars were still close friends, thought most of his higher in class friends made fun of his being friends with a "little maid". Chars didn't care too much when they made fun of them for that and could easily ignore it. Anise tired to ignore it too, but she always thought it was harder for her to ignore it than for him to. For a couple years Anise had a crush on her best friend but didn't know if he liked her like that. Hearing those remarks from his other friends only reminded her of her place in society and that her close friendship with the prince probably wouldn't be one to last a lot longer. The occurrences of upcoming events only lead her to realize this more._

_Anise stood by the well in the palace garden, a place where she and Chars sometimes agreed to meet when it was impossible to otherwise. The sun was beginning to set as she waited for Chars to come. Two girls around her age walked by. They were handsomely dressed and obviously of higher rank than she. They glanced over at her and giggled. The moment they were out of site Anise patted her hair and brushed off her dress. _

_"Anise?" she heard Chars's voice and spun around with a smile on her face. "Sorry it took me a while. There was some issue or something my mom was concerned with and then some girls I ran into wouldn't let me go anywhere."_

_"Always the girls," Anise laughed, secretly loathing those girls. "So what did you want to tell me?"_

_"Well…umm…you've heard things about me going away for a while, right? I mean I'm not sure, I haven't seen you in a while," he walked over to a bench and sat down, beckoning for her to come sit next to him._

_"Yes, I have," she sat down by him. "Is it true? Where are you going? Why are you going?"_

_"Do you think you ask enough questions at once?" he chuckled. "Well yeah it's true. I'm going away to some boarding school, Brighton School actually. It's supposed to be the best of the best, for the best of the best. And so I'll be there…for four years."_

_"What? Four years?" Anise looked at him in disbelief. "Are you serious?"_

_"Perfectly serious. I'm not exactly very happy about it either," he kicked a rock across the path._

_"But isn't Brighton really, really far from here?" Anise felt her heart tear as he nodded. "And for four years? Will you have holidays here?"_

_"No, my parents agreed that I shall not visit here during those four years as to not interrupt anything I am learning," he rolled his eyes. "They don't want to spoil this education."_

_"That's not fair," she leaned back on the bench. "So I won't see you until you're 17 years old?"_

_"Unless I get kicked out," he snickered "But my mom would kill me before that happens."_

_She laughed a little too. For a moment they both sat silently, looking out at the sunset. Chars looked at her and she pretended not to notice._

_"There was something else I wanted to tell you, before I left," she now looked at him in the eyes. "I like you."_

_"Well I like you too," she felt her heart jump into her throat._

_"No, not just as a friend though, that's not what I meant," he was nervous as he forced the words out of his mouth. "I really like you."_

_"That's what I meant, too," Anise grinned. "I really like you too."_

"Really?" he smiled too as she nodded. Chars leaned his head in closer to hers, but feeling a bit unsure of himself. She felt the same as she leaned closer to him. Closing her eyes, she felt his lips place a gentle kiss on hers. It was the first time either had felt a kiss. They pulled away and looked in each other's eyes. Smiling he took her hand and held it.

_Four years later Anise stood in the palace hall, organizing a bouquet of flowers in a vase. A dazed smile loomed on her face as she gazed off into space. Chars was returning today, after four years. The only chance she had to talk to him was when he wrote letters to her. He used to writer every week for the first couple of months but they had soon turned into only a letter on occasion. After a year and a half she had ceased to receive letters from him, though she would still write when she had time. _

_"Anise? Anise, are you alive?" her mother spoke up to her as she passed by. "You've been standing in that spot for the past five minutes. Honestly, this palace won't organize itself, you have a job to do."_

_"Oh, sorry. I was just…" she looked up at her mother who gave her an annoyed look, and decided to discontinue her sentence._

_"You weren't thinking about Chars were you?" she rolled her eyes. "When are you going to realize that this little crush you had on each other isn't anything more than that? I thought you were over it. It's time you grow up. Have you forgot about Nathan? You are promised to him and no one else."_

"No I haven't forgotten that," Anise said coldly as she walked away from her mother. As she stepped outside, she saw a group of about five girls rush past her.

"He's back! He's back early!" she heard them giggle amongst themselves.

She felt her heart jump to her throat. He's here early? He wasn't supposed to be here until the evening. It's only late morning. Who cares?

She followed the girls to the palace gates, where a crowd was now forming. She heard applauds as a carriage pulled up. Anise stood on her tiptoes and bit her lower lip as the coachman opened the carriage door. A young man with short brown hair stepped out first and it wasn't Chars. Then another young man with golden blonde hair grown a bit past his ears and dressed in rich materials stepped out. Anise squinted her eyes and beamed. It was Chars. His subjects applauded for their prince's homecoming and he smiled to them. He made his way into the crowd and smiled at all the girls as they swooned from his presence. He now neared her and she felt her heart race. Patting down her hair and smoothing out her dress, she tried to think of something to say. He was now a matter of feet away from her and as she opened her mouth to speak nothing came out. He looked at her, gave her a confident smile and winked, before continuing on his way.

"What do you mean it's not that simple?" Peter pulled her back into reality. "You could have just said, 'I'm engaged' and it would have been that simple. It doesn't matter if you arranged the marriage or if your parents arranged it or if I myself arranged it!"

"It's really not about who arranged it, Peter," Anise said, now getting annoyed at him. "You don't understand."

"Then tell me," he said sounding a bit demanding but gentle.

"I wanted…I wanted to get away…before I got married."

It had been two weeks since Chars had returned and he still had made no recognition towards Anise. Whenever she tried to approach him a friend, his parents or, what she hated most, a girl always pulled him away. From the first night he had been home, Anise noticed something different about him. He seemed to be more into himself. She also noticed that his friend that he had brought home from school acted as if he was superior as well. Another change, one that was bound to happen, was his increased interest in the opposite sex. He seemed to be with a girl whenever he was able to.

Anise now walked down a hallway in the palace. She looked down at her feet as she turned a corner and looked up just as she ran into someone.

"Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry! I wasn't-" she cut herself off as she realized who she had run into.

"Oh no, my lady, no need to apologize. It was my fault," Chars smirked at her as she gazed at him for a brief moment.

"Chars, it's me, it's Anise," she beamed from ear to ear.

"A-Anise? Wow! You've…" he laughed, "You've grown up."

"So have you," she laughed with him. "Oh it's so good to see you again!"

"And you too!" he looked her over. "I would have never recognized you if you hadn't told me who you were! You're so much more beautiful than I remember."

Anise blushed and glanced down at her feet before looking back into his eyes. "H-how…how was school?"

"School is school, no matter where you go," he looked out the window. "Though being away from here did help me learn more about our world, and some of its ways." He looked at her and smiled haughtily.

"Did you get my letters?" she questioned anxiously.

"Yes, I did and I was pleased to get news from you and my mother," he smirked at her again. "But I am sorry to admit that I had no time to respond, seeing as school was so pressing,"

"So you did hear what happened to your cousins then? I feel so sorry for them, especially Jemma."

"Oh, how could I not hear about them?" he rolled his eyes. "It's the biggest thing of the decade to happen in this family."

"True."

"But what is new with you?"

"I learned how to make dresses," Anise patted her evergreen dress. "I'm wearing one I made right now."

"It's lovely," he chuckled. "It looks lovely on you."

Anise blushed again. "Are you glad to be home, then?"

"I guess," Chars shrugged his shoulders. "Though I haven't found much change. Has anything else changed with you?"

"Oh…nothing really. Except…except I'm betrothed," she looked at him with sad eyes and he put on a look of disappointed shock.

"To who?" he said, concerned.

"Nathan Fields."

"He has a small fortune of his own, I hear," Chars stepped closer to her. "He is a lucky man to have you promised to him." he took another step closer to her.

"But I'm still in love with you," she whispered as his face lingered inches from hers.

"I know," she felt his breathe on her face and closed her eyes. He placed his hands on her waist and kissed her eagerly. She brought her hands to his face and cupped it. He moved his hands up her back and pressed her against the wall. They kissed deeper. Anise stopped and gently pushed his face away from hers.

"What about Nathan? I shouldn't be doing this, I'm promised to him," she whispered what she didn't want to hear.

"What about him? We can change all that," Chars kissed her cheek. "I can change all that."

"What do you mean?" Anise's eyes sparkled with a glitter of hope.

"Just marry me instead," he whispered what she wanted to hear as he began the passionate and lustful kiss once again. Anise felt her heart burst with joy. She wrapped her arms around his neck and let him carry her away.

A couple hours later, they lay in Chars's bed, wrapped only in the sheets. Anise smiled and twisted the sheets in her hands. She felt Chars's hand on her back and rolled over to face him. He smiled at her.

"I better go now," she whispered. "My mum will wonder what happened to me by now."

"You better not keep her waiting then," he brought her hands to his lips and kissed them gently.

"I should probably get dressed now," she let him kiss her cheek before getting up.

"Do you need any help?" he sat up and gazed at her.

"I'll be fine," she turned around and began putting her clothes back on. When she had finished, she sat back down on the bed and shared a final passionate kiss with Chars before heading for the door.

"I'll be seeing you around then, my dear?" he called to her softly in his silky tone.

She turned to him and nodded. Closing the door behind her, she smiled to herself. She was certain Chars loved her now. After all, he said he would marry her.

"Why did you want to get away?" Peter noticed that Anise seemed to be feeling sad as they went on with their discussion.

"I wanted to start over," she glanced out at the ballroom and back at Peter. "Well not exactly start over. I wanted to see what kind of life my best friend had left me for. I thought maybe if I could be like him I might be able to forget him, like he forgot me. So I told my mother I wanted to experience a bit of the world beyond what we know before I got married. I told her that being a maid in Narnia would help me do that while improving my skills of being a maid, I guess. When I was eighteen I came here. I was supposed to get married at twenty. Though, as you know, I turned twenty-one only a month ago. I didn't want to go back. I met you. You reminded me of everything that Cha-my friend, could have been. Peter, you are the worst mistake I've ever made, but I loved every minute of it."

"Then why can't you stay? I could explain everything to your parents," he sounded hopeful as he spoke.

"Peter, I'm so sorry, I've just had enough false love in my life," she hated what she was saying. "I-I really want to believe that we could be together, but what I loved in you was…was a vision of someone else. I should have told you sooner, I'm so sorry." She paused and smiled to herself. Wiping a tear from her eyes as she continued, "You see, I am what I came here for. I wanted to be like my friend, and I guess I've done it. Only I haven't forgotten him. And I've hurt you in the process. I'm just so frustrated with myself. I don't deserve to know you." Tears rolled down her cheeks and she tried to wipe them all away but they wouldn't stop coming. Peter brought her in close to him and held her as she cried.

Chars still stood just outside of the balcony, listening to them. He looked down at his feet as he thought of Anise. He didn't think of her very often, he tried not to. She was one of the few women who brought difficulty into his life. But he never really forgot her. It was too hard to forget her.

For a couple more days Anise and Chars would see each other. She would sneak past her parents in the late evening to see him. Everything seemed so perfect to her. The only thing that troubled her was that Chars hadn't brought up what he said about marrying her ever again. Doubts about his feelings pushed into her mind but she would push them back out. She also felt guilt about her actions. She didn't know how her parents would react if they were to find out about how shamelessly she had acted; she knew it wouldn't be good.

As they lay in his bed one night these thoughts raced through her head. She could hardly stand having the weight of these thoughts on her shoulders any longer.

"Now what happens?" she asked in a sort of innocence.

"What do you mean?" he laughed at her question.

"I mean, now what do we do? Where do we go from here? What happens?" she felt as if her questions made her look foolish.

"Um…well…" Chars laughed. "I guess we just go on with our normal lives."

"Really?" she looked at her fingers as she twisted the sheets some more. "But what about what you said the other day?"

"What did I say?"

"You said that…that you would…that you would marry me," she said in almost a whisper as she looked into his eyes, which revealed his regret.

"Well…Anise…I'm not so sure that will work," he tried to sound as if it pained him to say this.

"What do you mean?" her heart dropped onto a pit of thorns.

"It's just not that easy," he sounded sympathetic for her. "We'd have to get through your parents and my parents and Nathan Fields and his parents. It would not easy."

"But you're the prince, you could do it," she sat up and held the sheets up around her shoulders.

"Anise, getting married just wouldn't work out," he sat up as well.

"Chars, do you…do you love me?" she bit her bottom lip.

"What? Of-of course I do," he leaned in to kiss her but she pulled back.

"Then why can't you marry me?" she said sternly.

"It's not that easy," he hit his fist down onto the mattress.

"You make sure it's not easy for you to marry me, but you make it easy to let me give myself to you," she looked at him with cold eyes. "Why is it always about you? For as long as I've known you, it seems to have been about what's easiest for you. But now…now it's even more so. You're so into yourself. I shouldn't have been so foolish with you. I should have seen it." She turned her head away from his as a tear rolled down her cheek and she continued in a whisper. "I thought I loved you and you loved me. That thought blinded me from everything else."

Chars sat silent. He looked away from her and out the window. "You should probably go now," he whispered.

They looked at each other, tears rolling down her cheeks and a solemn look on his face. She took in a breath and turned her head away. She stood up from the bed and dressed herself, trying as hard as she could not to start weeping. She slowly opened the door and paused before exiting.

"Chars, did you ever even consider that you really loved me?" she glanced at him with sorrowful eyes.

"I really liked you once," she couldn't tell what emotions he was feeling from his tone or his expression. "And I really wanted you now."

Her lower lip quivered as she glanced at him once more before leaving his room and shutting him out behind her.

"Anise, it's ok," Chars turned his head as he heard Peter speak. "I understand you feel guilty about all this. You don't have to anymore. You're a bigger person than you give yourself credit for."

"No I'm not," she looked into his eyes and then to her hands.

"Look, you know you made some poor mistakes and you've admitted it; not just to yourself but to me as well," he sounded fatherly as he spoke. "I don't know about you but I think that's a darn hard thing to do. We're all too into ourselves to admit it to ourselves sometimes."

Anise just nodded her head. She gently pushed away from Peter, who was still holding her, and wiped her eyes. "I'm glad I knew you, Peter."

"Anise, I'll still have you," he slightly extended his hand to her.

"I'm sorry," she gently took his hand and put it back at his side. "After everything, I don't think I could. I'm promised to Nathan and I've kept him waiting long enough. It's time I do one honest thing in my life."

Peter didn't say anything, just gave her a slight smile. She returned the smile before he turned away and went back to the ball. She watched him go and turned around to lean her elbows onto the balcony rail.

"Well, hello there, Anise," she spun around as Chars strode up to her. "Long time no see." She gave him a cold glare. "Obviously not long enough."

"Chars, do you remember that last time we saw each other, oh, about four years ago?" she paused as he nodded. "Well there's something I've been holding onto that I want to give to you."

"What are you ta-" he was cut off as Anise brought her hand up to his face and smacked him as hard as she possibly could. He brought his hand up to his face but brought it down quickly.

"That's for everything you did to me!" she struck him again. "And that's for feeling nothing!"

"Feeling nothing? Where do you get that from?" he was obviously insulted to a great extent and looked around to make sure no one was watching.

"Oh don't pretend not to know!" she hissed. "I hope you find someone and you fall for them; I hope you fall for them bad. And then I hope they turn around and break your heart, and when they do, it will hurt like nothing you've ever felt before."

Speechless, Chars just pursed his lips together and glared at her. Anise glared back at him for a moment and pushed past him into the ball, not looking back. He watched her go, letting her words soak in.

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So what did ya'll think about this chapter? Let me know! And I hope you all have a great day! 


	6. Chapter 6

Hey, peeps! How's it going? Well I have chapter 6 for you guys! Thanks to everyone for reading previous chapters! Of course a special thanks to islington bus no. 199, StaR-758 and Upsetting-mistake616 for reviewing! I'm glad you guys liked chapter 5! And to Upsetting-mistake616, I am very glad that you are so enthusiastic about the Stranger! Oh and I noticed in Chapter 5 that the italics decided to sass me and pretty much half of the flash backs weren't in italics, so I apologize for my bad proof reading skills! But you guys could figure out what were flashbacks and what wasn't! Well now onto chapter 6! No copyright infringement intended!

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**Previously...**

"Feeling nothing? Where do you get that from?" he was obviously insulted to a great extent and looked around to make sure no one was watching.

"Oh don't pretend not to know!" she hissed. "I hope you find someone and you fall for them; I hope you fall for them bad. And then I hope they turn around and break your heart, and when they do, it will hurt like nothing you've ever felt before."

Speechless, Chars just pursed his lips together and glared at her. Anise glared back at him for a moment and pushed past him into the ball, not looking back. He watched her go, letting her words soak in.

* * *

Across the ballroom Susan now took a break from dancing. She grinned as she leaned her back against the wall and took a few deep breaths. Closing her eyes she felt someone's hand on her shoulder. 

"Happy birthday!" she opened her eyes to see her friend Meg. "Enjoying yourself?"

"Of course! I just need to catch my breath," she put her hand on her chest and laughed.

"Have you seen Edmund around?" Meg asked abruptly. "Because I cannot find him anywhere!"

"No, I'm afraid I haven't seen him either," Susan glanced around the room.

"Oh, no matter, I'll find him eventually," she tossed her long brown hair. "Susan, who was that man you were dancing with earlier?"

"Which one? There were so many," she smiled at her friend.

"Which one do you think I mean? The one you kissed, of course! What was that all about?" she gave her an odd look.

"Oh, that one," she let out an annoyed sigh. "I honestly couldn't tell you what that was about. I mean, here I was dancing with this strange man and trying to be friendly when just out of the blue he decided to kiss me! You know, he probably had some bet with his friends. 'I bet you to kiss the queen! Won't that be fun?' Ugh! I can't stand men sometimes."

"But he was very handsome," Meg looked up at the ceiling and smiled. "He had a mysterious air about him, didn't he?"

Susan looked at her with uncertainty. "I guess you could call him mysterious, but I would prefer to use unsocial."

"Unsocial? He came to a ball, didn't he? I'd say that makes him social," she smirked.

"Coming to one ball doesn't make someone social," Susan stood up straight and rolled her eyes. "And why are we even having this conversation? It's ridiculous!"

"You started it," Meg looked down at her nails.

"How did I start it?"

"By kissing him," she said this matter-of-factly.

"Oh, come off it!" Susan huffed and leaned back against the wall again. "And he kissed me, I didn't kiss him back," she added under her breath.

"Of course you didn't," Meg stated under her breath with sarcasm as she leaned back against the wall as well. "Was he a good kisser?"

Susan looked at her and raised an eyebrow. "I'm not even going to answer that question."

"Ok, so he was," Meg nodded her head. Susan gave her an odd look and the two broke out giggling.

"Excuse me," the friends stopped giggling as Aidan approached them. "Queen Susan?"

"Yes that's her," Meg answered him and twirled a lock of her hair with her index finger. "And I'm Meg."

"It's a pleasure," Aidan smiled at her. "I'm sorry to interrupt you two, but I just wanted a chance to introduce myself to you, Susan. I'm Aidan, part of Chars's party and his cousin. I came here to wish you a happy birthday."

"Thank you, Aidan," Susan smiled politely at him. "You are a cousin of Chars, then? So you'll be staying with us for the next month?"

"Yes, to both questions," he returned her polite smile.

"Wait a minute," Meg looked at him with a bit of annoyance. "You're Chars's cousin?"

"Yes, I am," Aidan seemed confused. "Do you know Chars?"

"Oh, I know him," she put a hand on her hip.

"Meg, how do you know Chars?" Susan was now confused while Aidan felt embarrassment.

"We have our connections," Meg gave Aidan a shot of a glare. "You don't take after him do you? Or does he take after you?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Aidan put his hands up in defense of himself. "Chars and I are two completely different people here. Sure he's my cousin and I get along with him but one of the only things that we have in common is the fact that we're related. So please, do not mistake me for someone like Chars. I couldn't be like him."

Meg narrowed her eyes and speculated him for a moment. "I guess you're not lying."

"Thank you," he nodded his head to her.

"Um…what was that about?" Susan looked at them with confusion.

"You don't know?" Meg looked at her in shock.

"Know what?" the queen asked with pure unawareness.

"Well, Prince Chars fancies—" Meg was cut off as a handsome young man tapped her on the shoulder.

"Care to dance?" he held his hand out to her.

Meg smiled shyly and put her hand in his. "I'd be delighted." The pair walked off to the dance floor.

"I don't understand her sometimes," Susan rolled her eyes. "But what can I do, she's one of my best friends."

"Yeah," Aidan chuckled.

"Do you think you could finish her explanation for me?"

"Oh, just don't worry about it, you'll find out," Aidan looked out at the dance floor. "The way things travel around here…yep, you'll find out. You don't need to worry about it now."

"That's very true, I probably will find out soon enough," Susan grinned at him.

He looked back to her and grinned as well. "Would you…would you care to dance with me?"

"I would love to dance with you," she didn't stop smiling as they took each other's hands and moved onto the dance floor.

As Susan and Aidan danced, their two younger siblings were still sitting together on the beach.

"So you've never actually courted anyone before?" Edmund looked at Pippa skeptically.

"Not really," Pippa looked at him, annoyed. "Why is it such a big deal?"

"It's nothing," he grinned. "Just that I can't understand how a girl like you could never have been courted."

"Maybe because I didn't want to be," she folded her arms across her chest. "Not every girl wants to sit around and have guys stare at her."

"That's not what I meant!" he shoved his fists into the sand. "And guys don't sit around and just stare at girls either! Well…most guys."

"See! Guys are pigs!" she pointed her index finger at him.

"What?" he smacked her hand down. "Well some girls enjoy having the guys stare at them, so what does that make them?"

"That makes them idiotic wenches," she folded her arms across her chest again. "And I'm not one of those girls! That's my point!"

"Ok, point proven," they both sat silent for a moment.

"You're different," Pippa said casually.

"What?" Edmund looked at her strangely.

"I said you're different," she smiled at him.

"In a good way or a bad way?"

"Different in a good way," she put her arms behind her and leaned back on her elbows.

"Wait a minute, didn't we already have a discussion like this earlier? You said I wasn't like a king or something," he laughed.

"Well, I felt like stating it again," she laughed too. "I'm just not used to being with people like you, I guess. You're very easy going."

"Well thank you, I guess," he leaned back on his elbows. "I think you're different in a good way, too. Most girls aren't so outgoing, at least not right away. They're usually just concerned with making a good impression or something. But if you ask me, the best impressions come from being yourself. Well I guess that could also make for the worst impressions. Like with you, you defiantly left a bad impression on me." He smirked at her.

"Well, the only impression I got from you is that you're an arrogant snob," she tried to give him a smug look as she continued with her sarcastic remarks. "And I'd be delighted to forget about you the moment we separate. In fact, I think I will."

"Then you can forget I did this," at that moment he grabbed her by the shoulders and kissed her full on the lips. For a moment she found herself kissing him back before pushing him away.

"What do you think you're doing?" she tried to sound angry with him. "Do you think it's ok to just go ahead and kiss me?" Edmund looked at her sheepishly. "You need my permission to kiss me!"

"Well then, can I kiss you?" he looked at her unsurely.

"I guess," this time she pulled him in for a kiss. As the kiss ended they slowly pulled away from each other. "Does this count as courting someone?"

"It could," Edmund grinned boyishly at her. He pushed a chocolate brown curl behind her ear and leaned in to kiss her again. A loud strum of instruments and a roar of applause from the ball startled them, making them realize they weren't the only two in the world.

"Maybe we should go back," Pippa said hesitantly. "Before they know we're gone or something."

Edmund nodded, but neither moved. They just gazed into each other's eyes, before Pippa spoke up again.

"Well, did you not hear me?" she smirked. Edmund grinned back at her and stood up, leaning over to help her up. "Thank you, good sir."

"It was my honor, good lady," as he spoke, she hooked her arm through his and held her heads high, trying to act as a proper lady. "It's no good trying to do that, act proper I mean." Edmund continued looking ahead and Pippa gave him a fake insulted look. "You're already perfect."

Pippa blushed slightly before composing herself. "Shut up, you're outdoing yourself now."

"But it's—"

"Just stop trying," she looked at him jokingly and gave him a sarcastic stern look whenever he tried to say anything. "If we're going to be courting, I don't want you using all those mushy-gushy, lovey-dovey compliments on me."

"But what if I can't help it?" he kicked a rock along the beach as they slowly made their way back.

"Self control, King Edmund, self control," Pippa laughed and kicked the rock with him.

They got back the same way they had come to the beach. When they had returned, dinner was being served. The cooks had prepared many delicacies and other mouthwatering victuals in honor of Queen Susan's birthday ball. There was toasting and cheers made for Susan, her siblings and all of Narnia. The place was filled with the clatter of dishes and the buzz of voices. Everyone ate heartily and each had their fill, or more than enough. About an hour and a half after dinner was over, a few people got up to dance more, but those who's stomach's were too full did not.

The ball was getting closer to its end, with not as much dancing. Mr. Tumnus was now standing near the door, unconsciously stroking his small beard. His vacant eyes looked out over the guests. Stifling a yawn, he turned for the door. It seemed pointless to stay much longer, it had been a long day and the ball was as well as over. He walked slowly down the abandoned hallway, only turning once to look at the people still smiling and awake.

"Tumnus!" he heard the pitter patter of Fox's feet and looked down to see his friend next to him. "Where are you going?"

"I'm tired and the ball's over anyway," the faun had disappointed streaked in his tired tone of voice.

"But you had a good time didn't you?" the fox tried to perk him up a bit but only got silence. "Did you ask anyone to dance? Anyone in particular?"

"Not tonight," they now turned a corner to a path outside. The fresh air hit them like a cool wave of comfort. As they walked down the path they reached a few stone steps, where they sat down.

"So are you ready to talk now?" the fox looked up at his friend.

"What is there to talk about?" Tumnus looked up at the stars shimmering in the sky.

"What is there to talk about?" Fox let out a small laugh and shook his head. "We both know that there's something to talk about and exactly what it is."

Tumnus looked down at him with a bit of annoyance. The fox looked at him expectantly and the faun let out a heavy frustrated sigh.

"Fine, I like Lucy!" he stood up, pacing nervously. "No! Why stop there? I love Lucy! I, a simple faun, love a queen of Narnia! I love her!"

"There, we've broken the ice in this discussion!" the fox stood up and brushed his tail back and forth. "That wasn't so hard, was it? So now all you have to do is tell her."

"What? Tell her? Are you insane?" he sat back down and fidgeted with his hands. "I can't tell her! Who knows what she'd think of me if I told her! I'm an old faun and she's a young…beautiful human queen. I shouldn't love her because of what we can't help! What we are! And besides…telling her that I love her would probably be the last thing she'd want to hear. She can find other men too, ones that she's more interested in."

"Tumnus, I've never heard you talk like this before!" the fox shook his head. "Since when did you let your confidence drop so low? How do you know that Lucy doesn't feel the same? If she does, nothing else matters! And you'll never know if you don't try to tell her! Even if she does deny you, you wouldn't have to live in the uncertainty of what if."

"But that's the thing! There is no what if! There can't be!" he stood up and paced again. "It's obvious she loves someone else and wouldn't even hint to a thought about me…and her...together. She's one of my best friends and I don't want to ruin anything by telling her."

"You're being ridiculous!" Fox looked at him in disbelief. "If you're talking about her and Chars, I'd hardly call that love! She's just flirting with him and, in case you haven't noticed, every girl seems to do that with him! It's nothing serious between them."

"And if it does get serious? Then everything I've ever thought was in vain," he said almost reluctantly. "It would be a waste of my time, and hers, to tell her!"

"But you don't know that, Tumnus! Telling her could change everything!" the fox was beginning to get frustrated. "It could turn out to be the best use of your time in your entire life!"

"But it's not!" Tumnus now began to walk back inside. "It can't be."

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Well there you have it! Chapter 6! What did you guys think? Of course, I really appreciate everything you guys have to say! Have a good day! 


	7. Chapter 7

Hello, I am back. I am so sorry that I haven't updated in forever and a half! The only real excuse I have is writer's block and laziness! I feel so bad for not updating and I can't exactly promise it won't happen again but I am determined that it will not! One of my New Year's resolutions was to get a lot further in this story and a few others I'm working on so we'll see how that goes! I'm hoping that I can get an update maybe every other week or something now with this story. I am determined to finish it no matter how long it takes!

As always I want to thank everyone who read Chapter 6! I hope you all liked it! And, of course, a huge thanks to islington bus no. 199, StaR-758, Arhazivory, and Black Moon White Sun for reviewing! You guys are amazing! Thank you for being so patient with me! I don't deserve such great reviewers!

Of course, no copyright infringdment intended and I hope you all enjoy the story!_

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_

_Previously..._

"You're being ridiculous!" Fox looked at him in disbelief. "If you're talking about Lucy and Chars, I'd hardly call that love! She's just flirting with him and, in case you haven't noticed, every girl seems to do that with him! It's nothing serious between them."

"And if it does get serious? Then everything I've ever thought was in vain," he said almost reluctantly. "It would be a waste of my time, and hers, to tell her!"

"But you don't know that, Tumnus! Telling her could change everything!" the fox was beginning to get frustrated. "It could turn out to be the best use of your time in your entire life!"

"But it's not!" Tumnus now began to walk back inside. "It can't be."

* * *

As Mr. Tumnus went back inside, the ball was now over and people were slowly scattering away. Jemma and Pippa were heading to their room for the night. 

"Where were you the whole time, Pip? I hardly saw you!" Jemma smiled at her sister.

"I was at the ball! Where else would I be?" Pippa tried not to laugh as they began walking up the stairs.

"So you were actually dancing?" she looked at her with an unconvinced smile.

"Um…yeah! That's what people do at balls, right?" pushing a curl behind her ear, she chuckled a little bit. "Did you dance?"

"Of course!" behind them they could now hear footsteps and the voices of two men. They turned around to see Peter and Edmund coming. Pippa bit her lip and tried her best to conceal her emotions. When Edmund saw her, a wide smile stole across his face.

"Why hello, ladies!" Edmund nodded his head towards them. "It's a pleasure to see you! You look lovely tonight, of course!"

Pippa giggled, Jemma looked at her oddly and Peter looked at Edmund oddly.

"Hello, Jemma. And this would be Pippa, I presume?" Peter smiled at them as they all continued walking.

"Yes," Pippa and Edmund both answered his question with their older siblings looking curiously at them.

"You two already met then, I take it?" Jemma eyed them both.

"Yes, we already met," Edmund grinned. "We met at the ball."

"Yeah we met during the dancing," Pippa said a bit awkwardly.

"And we may have danced once or twice," the two younger siblings smiled at each other. The four continued walking down the hallway in silence until Jemma stopped in front of a door.

"Well, this is our room, Pippa," Jemma put her hand on the doorknob. "Goodnight, Peter and Edmund. We'll see you tomorrow, I would guess."

"You would be guessing right," Edmund said, a bit too happily. "Goodnight!"

"Goodnight," Peter politely bowed his head and smiled.

Jemma smiled and curtsied, nudging her sister to do the same. The two girls said their final goodnights and went into their room. Edmund looked at the closed door for a few seconds longer with a content expression on his face.

"What's gotten into you?" Peter grinned at his brother.

"Can't a man be happy with his life?" Edmund grinned back.

"Of course he can," the high king patted his brother on the back as they continued down the hall. Soon the brothers were each in their own bedroom along with most of the other occupants in Cair Paravel. The sound of silent slumber after a long day soon filled the halls.

As the sun rose the next morning, so did Queen Susan. She hadn't planned on getting up so early, but she had trouble immersing herself into a world of dreams when he always appeared. She had tried forgetting the whole incident with Eldon, not only because she was embarrassed by it but also the fact that she couldn't seem to figure out how she felt about him. It wasn't a matter of loving or hating him; that much she thought she knew and at the moment she was leaning towards the later option. What she couldn't figure out was the feeling his presence brought. It seemed familiar, but very distantly. His air was mysterious, of course, but there was something else she felt. It was the way he held himself, the way he spoke; it all seemed so smooth and almost illusory. The most familiar aspect about him were his eyes, his blue eyes. There was something about them that she couldn't quite put her finger on.

_I'm losing my mind. Susan shook her head as she finished dressing herself in a simple champagne colored dress. I'm thinking too much about him. But it's just...he's so…almost familiar. This is killing me! He said I might know some of his relatives, but if I did know his cousin, siblings, father or mother, surely I'd know at least of him._

Susan quietly exited her room so as not to wake anyone, and slowly walked down the hall.

_But why did he kiss me?_

She tried pushing him out of her mind, but it was too hard.

_I just need to think about something else that happened at the ball. But what tops that? He kissed me…and it's not like it was really that bad. Wait! Wait! Wait! That is not what I think! It was a rude and thoughtless action! It was not…something…good. No! No! It wasn't! But why would he do that? Ugh! He's a man…a pig._

She grunted as she pushed open the kitchen door. Soft light streamed in from a window facing the garden. The garden scene sparkled with dew and light in the early morning, casting an enchanting look upon it as she glanced out the window. She rubbed her eyes as she walked to a counter holding a bowl of fruit. She examined a red apple and picked it up. Its surface was smooth and unharmed without a scratch or bruise. She stared at the apple a minute longer. If one had been looking at Susan they would of thought she was completely entranced by this simple apple, when really she saw not the apple, or anything else for that matter, but was too consumed in her own thoughts.

"You're up early, dearie," Susan spun around in surprise as she saw the old cook walk in, still wearing her nightgown. "Good morning."

"Good morning, Abby," the queen leaned back on the counter and finally took a bite of the apple. "How did you sleep?"

"Very well, as always," Abby looked out the window at the garden and squinted her eyes. "Looks like it will be a fine day, I'll be sure to go out and enjoy this weather later, as I'm sure you will too."

Susan nodded and took another bite of the apple. As she chewed, the aged cook observed her. Susan shifted under her gaze, Abby always had a knack for telling when someone had something on their mind.

"And why are you up so early today? You had a long night, I expected everyone to sleep long hours. I'm surprised even the sun came up," Abby walked over to a cabinet and opened it to take out a bowl.

"I just couldn't sleep any longer," Susan looked at the juicy white flesh within the apple and took another bite. "How come you're up so early?"

"I'm always up. When you're as old as me, you won't sleep either," Abby chuckled as she reached into another cabinet and pulled out a few eggs. She cracked the eggs and let their gooey innards fall into the bowl. The cook opened a drawer and took out a whisk. The two were silent for a moment as she rapidly beat the eggs. "But I think I know why you're up, Susan."

"What do you mean?" the queen was puzzled by her remark.

"All the girls were gossiping about 'Queen Susan's secret lover' last night," Susan felt her cheeks flush as Abby continued stirring. "'The scandalous kiss that revealed them at the ball'."

"That is not true!" Susan slammed down the rest of her apple on the counter. "That man and I are not…lovers. I didn't even know of him until last night! Good lord, did everyone see him kiss me? I don't even know why he did that. Why would he do that? Of course everyone is going to talk about it! If I wasn't a queen no one would even care."

"Oh they would care, just not as much," Abby stopped stirring and turned to face Susan. "Don't pay any heed to gossip; those who gossip only wish their lives were half as interesting as those they gossip about. As for the man, well, who know what drove him. I'd say you'd be just as good if you didn't think of him either. This whole issue will soon be unimportant to everyone; so don't waste too much time fretting over it. Enjoy the day and your guests."

Susan nodded and smiled at the old woman. Abby was like a caring grandmother to everyone.

"Thanks," the queen kissed the cook on the cheek and headed for the door. "I think I'll go practice archery for a bit."

"Have a joyful day, Susan," she went back to stirring the eggs.

Susan went back to her room, fetched her bow and quiver with arrows, and headed back towards the garden. As she stepped outside she took in a deep breath of the fresh morning air. A small content smile spread across her lips as she walked down the garden's path. In a secluded corner she had set up her own small practice range, just for when she wanted to be alone.

Putting an arrow into place, she aimed for the target. She let the arrow fly and it hit just a few inched from the center. After letting a few more arrows go, one finally hit the center. She smiled with satisfaction and went to retrieve the arrows. She pulled each arrow out of the target and walked back to her position. As she readied another arrow she heard footsteps crunching the dried leaves somewhere behind her. Lowering her bow, she turned around to find nothing. She just rolled her eyes and continued aiming. The arrow hit the center and she readied another. Again she heard the footsteps and turned around.

"Hello?" she squinted her eyes as if that would allow her to see whoever was there. She waited a few seconds for any sort of response, looking at her surroundings suspiciously. When no one responded she went back to her archery.

She held the bow up and pulled the arrow back, carefully aiming for the center. She could almost feel the arrow's path. When she was on the verge of firing she was interrupted by a, "Good morning."

Susan screamed and quickly spun around as the arrow flew away. She felt her pulse quicken as she saw a man cloaked in black. His clothes were travel worn, but his face appeared cleanly shaven. He had unmanaged dark hair and icy blue eyes. Her eyes narrowed as she recognized the man who had kissed her last night. Eldon.

"What are you doing here?" her tone sounded almost dangerous.

"I was walking," he said this as if it was a well known fact that she should've been aware of. He waited for her response but he only got a cold glare. "You were practicing archery?"

She continued to glare. "What were you thinking?"

"What do you mea-" He wasn't able to finish as she struck him across the face.

"Why did you kiss me?" she demanded sternly.

"I…I…I don't know," he looked at her hopelessly.

"You don't know?" she looked as if she was about ready to slap him again. "That is not a good enough answer."

"No, it isn't, I agree," he looked into her eyes. "But I apologize if that makes any difference to you."

"Actually, it really doesn't," she crossed her arms across her chest. "I want an explanation. Now."

"You really want an explanation?" he smiled at her.

"Yes!" she said impatiently.

"You're beautiful," he stated simply.

Susan's face flushed. She opened her mouth to say something but nothing came out. She clamped her mouth shut and narrowed her furious eyes at him again. She turned around and took a few steps away before quickly turning around to face him again.

"You kissed me because I'm beautiful? That has got to be the…stupidest thing I have ever heard!" she fumed in what seemed like a rage. "You men are so full of yourselves! You're so stupid! I can't believe you! Because I'm beautiful, that's why you kissed me in front of my whole country? Do you know how much you embarrassed me? You are horrible! Ugh!"

Eldon watched her rant with a serious yet amused expression on his face. When she stopped she took a deep breath and glared at him again.

"Are you finished?" he tried not to smile.

"You're unbelievable!" she shoved him with both her hands and he took a few steps back.

This time Eldon couldn't help but grin in amusement. He shook his head slowly as he chuckled softly to himself.

"What is it?" Susan sounded disgusted.

"I think Aslan gave you the wrong name," as he spoke she tried to hide her confusion by continuing to glare. "Queen Susan the gentle? Well it seems very…not exactly fitting right now."

"It doesn't mean I always have to be gentle," she crossed her arms again. "And I have a right to be mad! You're a jerk!"

"I am rightfully accused," he nodded his head towards her. His eyes softened as he continued speaking, "I shouldn't have kissed you. I'm truly sorry for being so thoughtless."

"You should be," she was beginning to lose some of her anger now.

"And if you don't mind, I'd like to go back to the beginning," he spoke slowly, "as if this were our first meeting."

Susan eyed him carefully, not quite sure what he was getting at, and only found sincerity in his eyes. Though she still felt some anger towards him, she knew she couldn't hold a grudge forever. She slowly nodded her head. A small smile spread across his lips. He extended his hand towards her and she took it in a friendly handshake. She found his hands felt rough but held hers gently in the brief moment they touched.

"Hello," he said formally. "I am Eldon and I am pleased to make your acquaintance."

She couldn't help herself from smiling. "I'm Susan, and the pleasure is all mine."

* * *

Well that was Chapter 7! Hopefully you enjoyed it! Your reviews would be appreciated! I hope you all have a great day and a great New Year! 


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